Being Measured for the Crown
by laurensnana
Summary: The Explosion that has rocked the historic Brady Pub has killed many, changed lives, and sends EJ, Harris, Bo and John on a quest to rescue Sami and the children. Who did this? Why? What do they want?
1. Chapter 1

**Being Measured for the Crown**

Prologue: Lives have been lost, families destroyed, and a city is devastated by what has been done at the Brady Pub. EJ Wells, Harris McMurty, and Lexie Carver now have more reasons than ever to work together to make sure the DiMera legacy does not die.

**Chapter I**

The cry came to her in the dream. It was an infant, angry with hunger, cold or wet, but for whatever reason, there was a high level of distress being signaled by the sound. It awakened in her a response, triggered by some level of the human programming to care for babies. She fought to get to the sound in her dream, but the effort was so tiring, her limbs felt as though they were weighted down, and her head was too heavy to lift from the pillow.

Her head moved from side to side on the pillow, and she managed to open eyelids for a moment, and was rewarded by the sound being distinctly louder, which was helping her to become a bit more alert and more able to concentrate on the cry. Her vision was only of a white light, and she put her hands up to her eyes, and felt that they were covered in a gauze film, which she could tell was some type of bandage. She struggled to remember, but she could not. The dryness of her mouth and lips made speaking impossible, but she made an effort anyway.."EJ..." her whisper was weak, but she was calling for her husband, knowing he should be here by her side, he would want to see her, to know she was alright.

"She is waking up..good, good, see if you can get her to eat a little soup. She will need something on her stomach soon or she will get nauseated" a female voice was speaking, and Sami was relieved.

The doctor was a woman, this must be a hospital she was in. Her lungs still burned from the smoke, there had been so much smoke. It had seemed like she was floating out of the smoke, now she knew she had been carried. Fighting to recall things that shock had forced her to forget was tiring her out again. There was so much she did not remember. When the infants cry came again, she was startled, and she struggled to sit up, the children! Now she remembered! She had to find them, it was so dark, and she was trying to find them..that was what she had forgotten!

"Lie back down now, little Missy, it's alright, I won't let anyone hurt you, " the voice was familiar, and his touch was firm and insistent as he pushed her back down. The side rails on the bed had restraints which were again put on her arms to keep her from sitting up, and she was too weak to struggle much. The needle was put into her arm, not to put her to sleep, just to make her easier to manage. Bart knew it was important to make her eat something. She had to be made presentable before the children could see her. If she was like this, they would be more frightened than they already were.

On the second level of the building, a nursery area for the children had been set up. It was well equipped with television, toys and video games. The nursemaids who had been assigned to the children were pleasant women, who had been instructed to treat all the children kindly.

Theo was sitting on the bed with the other four children grouped around him. He was reading to them, which had been a nightly ritual for them since they had arrived at this place. The first few nights, he had done it to keep the others from crying so much, and now he did it to keep himself from crying with them. They all wanted their mother and father. He wanted his too.

Jessica had nightmares from the very first night, Justin had taken to crawling into bed with her to soothe her .Kacie was holding up well as her struggles as a cancer patient had taken much of the fear in her little soul away and she maintained a quiet stoicism. Ace was different, again, this was another case of abandonment to him, and he was dealing with it as he had all the other times. He was a holy terror, and the only child the nursemaids warily watched, before bringing him meals, or helping him dress. They both had the bruises on their shins that had earned their caution.

The soup was warm, with a savory taste that felt pleasant going down her throat. It was also helping her think, as the nourishment in her stomach made memories come sharper. She found her voice, and grasped at the hand that was feeding her the soup. The restraints kept her from getting to the hand, and straining only tired her, so she let her hands fall again at her side.

"Where is my husband..my children..tell me please..what happened?" Questions came fast now, there was much she needed to be told.

"My grandmother, Grandpa Sean..there was an explosion..where are they? Are they alright?"

"Shh...you must not get excited, don't worry, everyone is fine, you are fine..eat the soup, it will make you strong, and you will be able to see your children soon, Eat the soup now..You need to be strong". The voice carried with it an accent Sami could not recognize. It soothed her, but she would not be silent.

"Why are my eyes covered, can I take it off?" she pointed up at the gauze film again.

"In a few days, yes, your eyes were injured by the...the flash..but in a few days all will b well, the doctor has said..please, eat more soup..it is good for you." And the voice soothed as it spooned the soup into Samis mouth.

Sean Brady paced the cell he was in. The blow that had knocked him out had left a goose egg sized lump on the back of his head, and he rubbed it, welcoming the discomfort, as it kept him awake. He began to yell at the top of his lungs, then picked up the mattress from the narrow cot he had been lying on. He picked up the small cot and began throwing it against the cell bars, trying to make as much noise as he could! He wanted to see a human face..he wanted to know where his wife was! Who is doing this to him?. He could imagine only one answer, but that was an impossibility, as Stefano DiMera was dead! .

**Chapter II**

When the reports began coming over the television about the devastation at the Brady Pub, Kate had stood transfixed. Phillip had punched in a number on his phone, forgetting all about the Council vote, and had cursed when his call failed to be answered. He too found himself staring at the scene unfolding on the screen. Only Victor still seemed unfazed. He called for Nico to bring the car around. Telling Kate to stay put, Phillip and Victor drove down to the waterfront area. The police had cordoned it off to almost a mile perimeter, so they parked and began trekking to as close to the Pub as they were allowed.

As Victor saw the damage done, and the cost in human lives and suffering, he glared at Phillip in anger. "The Council said it would be a clean job..is this what they call clean? Hell, I could have hired gang members who would have acted more professionally!"

Bo Brady and Shawn had made their way down to the area, many of the officers were still friends with Bo, and they had not stopped him as he bulled his way in, he was not going to be stopped as he tried to find his parents. One of his former partners called out to him "Bo..Oh God, Bo I am so sorry!"

"Duke, what do you know? Have you seen Mom or Pop? Do you know if they got out ok?"

"Bo..over there, God, Bo, I am so sorry" Bo looked where Duke had pointed, on the street was a row of bodies, covered in white sheets. There had been so many injured, that the dead were just laid out to await transport to the morgue. The living had to be attended to first.

Bo clutched onto Shawn, and they made their way over to where the bodies had been laid out and covered. Bo saw the slight figure, and a cry of agony escaped his lips. He ran then, covering the distance in a second as he fell to his knees next to his mothers body. He pulled the sheet back, and saw her beloved face, still as kindly looking as when she had been alive..and she had been alive only minutes ago. Bo screamed then, screaming his rage at who could have done something like this to a woman who would have helped anyone..who never hurt anyone..who was so full of love and kindness, now gone for what reason on gods earth?...

Victor saw Bo kneeling, holding the sheet covered body to his chest, and his own heart began beating harder with the knowledge that he had also lost his soul that night. His steps to reach Bo were quick, but he was finding it difficult. For some reason, he could feel his breath becoming short, and his legs so heavy he had to struggle to keep them moving. Phillip saw his father stumble, then collapse, falling to the pavement before he could reach Caroline.

"Pop!" Phillip ran to reach his father, trying to find the aspirin that Victor had been told to always keep handy. Victors eyes were wide open as he saw death approaching. He knew he had it coming, had known it for so long, but it was still a surprise. The only wish he had as he gave in to it was to turn his head towards where Caroline lay, which he did, then his eyes closed for the last time.

His cries for help had gone unnoticed, there were so many injured, still so many being led to the ambulances, one old man dead of a heart attack was not of paramount importance. Finally someone had stopped.

"Carrie..I think he's dead..oh God, what have we done?" Philip cried up to Carrie who had seen him, and ran over to check if he was alright. The man with her had stripped off his coat and knelt down to Victor, opening his shirt and beginning CPR, alternating the pumping action of his hands with mouth to mouth breathing. His efforts were strenuous, but after a minute, he announced, "he has a pulse, get someone over here quickly, he needs to get to a hospital now!"

Phillip managed then to get one of the paramedics to come and assess his father. The medic was disgusted, "We have a lot of trauma going on here, and you lookie loos coming down here to stick your noses where they don't belong is a shame! This old coot would have been fine if he had just stayed home where he belonged!"

As the last words left his mouth, the medic found himself in a death grip by Philip. "This is my father, Victor Kirakis..a very important man in this town..you want to keep your job and your breath..get him on an ambulance NOW!"

The threat in Phillip's voice resulted in a immediate attitude adjustment on the part of the medic who signaled for the next ambulance and had Victor placed on it. Phillip whispered in the ear of his father, "I will be there as soon as I can Pop, now I need to find Lucas and Austin."

"Phillip..my God, were Austin and Lucas still in the pub when this happened? Let us help you find them" and Carrie would have done so, except she then saw Bo and Shawn and the figure of her Grandmother being rocked in Bo's arms. Her own cry of devastation made Lloyd hug her to him, but she struggled away to get to her grandmothers side.

Running, Carrie stumbled in her haste over one of the sheet covered corpses, and as Lloyd caught up to her, and helped her to her feet, she looked down in horror as the face she had uncovered was one she had known so well for so long! Austin! He was not peaceful looking in death, and Carrie reached one hand down to gently move a lock of his hair from his eyes. Then she began to cry with grief, a cry so deep and hurtful, it made Lloyd stand back, afraid to interfere, afraid not to.

Belle had called over to her parents house, asking them if they had the televison on. It was not often they did, and tonight was no exception, but when she told them what was going on they had gone immediately to the balcony to see what was visible. Both had grabbed their coats, and Marlena pulled out her medical bag. She knew whatever expertise she could offer would be needed. The injured would overwhelm the para medic teams, and any assistance would be welcomed.

John had seen EJ first, and as he urged Marlena to give medical assistance, he made his way over to where EJ sat, with Harris, both of them holding cups of coffee that never reached their lips. Chandler Loring was with a news crew, getting reports out, but John was relieved to hear, instead of putting her microphone in front of suffering people, she was instead concentrating on giving people information about how to check on loved ones, and advising people not to come down to the area, they would only get in the way of the emergency personnel

"EJ, has anyone seen the Bradys?" and they gave him the news of Carolines death. John saw that EJ was deep within himself, barely nodding towards where the bodies were.

Then John knew why. "EJ, Sami, was she in there? Where is she?"

Harris answered, for he knew EJ was unable to say the words, he had not spoken at all for the last hour.

"Sami and the family were in there, still in there..and so was Pop Brady..we have not found any of them with the ones who managed to get out of the Pub..the firemen say we will know if they are in there when they can enter the building, or what is left of it..that won't be until morning at best".

John then saw the burned out remains of the van that Sami always used to move her family about in. The car seats were burned out, and a small stuffed toy lay on the pavement, unharmed. John went to pick it up and saw it was little 'Anton's teddy bear. John held it to his chest, remembering the spirited little boy who had clung to that bear, a fierce child who would not give in to lifes bumps in his road.

**Chapter III**

Matt had turned the corner leading to the pub when the blast occurred. The force of the first explosion had made his car leave the road, hitting against a mail box. His past experience in the Navy Seals had left him no doubt as to what had occurred. This had all the earmarks of a nitrate car bomb, like the one used in Oklahoma City, only on a smaller scale. At first he did not see that it was a direct hit on the pub, then he had seen the cab that had rolled onto its side from the force of the blast. Making her way out of one of the cab windows was Chelsea, her face bloodied, a look of fright and confusion on her face.

Matt ran to help her, and the cab driver also. He took one look at her, and was relieved to see she did not appear seriously hurt, just stunned. The cut on her forehead was still bleeding, and he took his handkerchief to hold against it.

"God Matt, what happened?"she leaned into his strength, not comprehending what was going on. Then she looked toward the pub and screamed! Her great grandparents, her uncles, and Sami and all the kids had been inside when she had left only minutes before.

"Matt, what if they are still in there?"but his face told her the story, if they were in there, there was no hope, no hope at all.

Marlena was taking the blood pressure, and other vitals of four victims at once who were lying on the pavement, not even able to cover them as there were no longer any blankets available. She took off her own coat to cover the most seriously injured man, but when she knelt to tuck it in, she heard the rattle in his chest that meant he no longer needed it. John was next to her by the time she had taken it on to the next woman in the line. He carried the teddy bear she had seen him tuck Anton in with, and she looked at him with an unbelieving look.

"Where is Sami? Where did you get that?" John's head dropped to his chest at the question, and he did not know how to tell her of everything that was lost on this night. Standing, she looked past him to where EJ and Harris sat, still staring at the smoking ruins of the pub. Over on the grassy area, she saw Bo carrying the limp figure of Caroline Brady towards her. Chelsea and Matt also were making their way into the area, both of them white with the shock of all they were seeing. It was too much to take in, and each time another victim looked up at them, they would pause, seeing if there was anything they could do to help, most times the victim just wanted to know if they had seen or heard of one of their loved ones..showing pictures if they had one. Chelsea had tears raining down her face as she had to tell each one.."No, I am so sorry", while Matt tried to keep her moving in the direction of EJ and Harris.

Chandler Loring put down her microphone, and got out her phone to call home. When the message machine picked up for the third time, she got worried. Nanny should have woke up with that ring, or else how would she ever hear Liam when he cried? The broadcast had to continue, so she put her phone away, deciding she would find Harris and have him make the next call.

Carrie and Lloyd were doing all they could to help as well, when Carrie heard someone weakly call out her name. Her attention was caught by the green and yellow jacket of his favorite football team, and she saw Lucas being carried on a stretcher to one of the waiting ambulances. His face was covered in an oxygen mask, and he was covered from the waist down, both arms infused with i.v. tubes. Horrified, Carrie looked away, and Lloyd shielded her from the sight, Lucas was alive, but he had no legs!. His hand reached out to Carrie..he needed to know "Austin..is Austin alright..please call Mom, tell her I am fine, but find out about Austin.

"Damnit,!" the para medic was reading the alert bracelet on Lucas's arm. "This guys HIV, double glove it now people!" and Lucas was taken onboard the ambulance.

When her cell phone rang, Kate picked up immediately, not bothering to check, but assuming it was Phillip or Victor.

Her former daughter in-law twice over was sobbing as she delivered the news to Kate, who only began screaming at her to quit lying, "Damn You to Hell, quit lying! Put Phillip on the phone, where is Phillip?" and Kate was still screaming that when Nico came in and took the phone from her to speak with Carrie.

His accent was thick, but he was calm as he asked Carrie if she knew where Phillip and Victor were, and again, she was the bearer of the bad news. Thanking her, he hung up the phone, and took the glass of bourbon out of Kate's hands.

"We have to get to hospital, Mr. Kirakis is there, and your son Lucas also, come, we must go quickly!"

"And Austin?" Kate demanded he give her a different answer from what Carrie had said.

"He is dead, that is what Carrie has said, so come, we find out for ourselves, but Mr. Kirakis is alive, Lucas is alive, that is what counts..here is your coat. Lets go!" He pushed her towards the door, helping her put it on as they walked. Nico was trying not to be too hard on her, but woman should shut up and listen, do what she told! Nico was nothing if not old world when it came to these things. The fact he was sleeping with Kate had no bearing on what he thought her place should be.

The waiting to hear was finally too much to bear for Hope. Maggie was on her way to stay with Julianna, and Hope called Julie and Doug to see if they may have heard anything. Glued to their television sets, they had tried to see if they saw Bo or any of the Bradys on the set, but no one familiar appeared. Over and over the news people had repeated that the historic Brady Pub was leveled, but there was no word on any of the people who had been known to be in the pub when it was bombed.

The moment Maggie walked in Hope was out the door, barely stopping to make sure Maggie had the cell phone number she would be on. Running, she made the waterfront area in ten minutes, and she began the desperate search for Bo and Shawn. Marlena was the first one she found, and although she was busy, still helping bandage the wounded, she hugged Hope like she would never let her go.

"They are all gone..Hope, all of them. What is happening?" Marlena was sobbing, but at the same time, she was giving a shot of morophine to the man whose arm was badly burned.

"Who is gone? Marlena? Tell me now!" Hope shook Marlena, demanding to know what she meant.

"Sean, Caroline, Sami, the kids..all the kids..even Theo Carver..they were all trapped in there!" Marlena was in agony, agony of regret, guilt, remorse, and the sorrow of someone who has lost a child. It was searing in its pain to her, for Sami was her child, her baby girl from so long ago.

**Chapter IV**

The resilience of children is an amazing thing. That is what the psychologist on the staff had said. As he watched from the balcony at the sight of the five of them playing and laughing on the beach, the wheel chair just out of sight, he had to admit that the psychobabble the man preached was correct. Left to the care of the two nursemaids who had been instructed to be kind to them, they seemed to be thriving. Apparently under the tutelage of the two nannies, and the youngest of the five, Italian was being spoken more and more in the nursery, and it had only been three weeks.

Samantha was improving by the day. Her bandages were being removed today, and she would for the first time see her real surroundings, and become completely aware of where she was and who it was who had saved her and the children. Chuckling to himself, he knew she would not be the slightest bit grateful. Her injuries from the blast concussion had gone beyond the shock to her eyes, internal injuries had also occurred that had necessitated some surgery. The scarring on her face was unfortunate, but repairable. She would be restored to her former beauty. He would make sure of it.. She was alive, her children were alive, that was what was important. Because of him, and him alone they would remain so.

The old man however was more trouble than he was worth, and it was probably a bad idea to have gotten him out of the building. The noise he made was disturbing to all the staff, and no one could get a civil word out of him. He would be reunited with his granddaughter and the children soon, but he was an annoyance

. "Ah, well, he will soon have another purpose, so it is well that he was saved", regretfully, Caroline had ran for the front of the building when the men had come in, and while she had escaped from his people, she ran into the path of the worst of the blast.

Monitoring the news reports, he knew she had died. That was so unfortunate, but things happen. The councils plans had been thwarted, and it must be up to EJ to take care of them. Until then, the lineage was protected and safe with him.

He motioned to the attendant who came over and pushed him back into the house. The elevator took him to the hospital level and he took his place in the observation room above the operatory to watch the unveiling of Samantha.

She was sitting up now, not too sure of herself, as the time in bed had been lengthy. Her limbs had been exercised by an excellent therapist, and some of the time she had even been connected to the Phoenix, to ensure she would remain ambulatory once she was completely well.

Now, all of the medical team was assembled, waiting to see how her eyesight would be after the unveiling. She seemed to sense the tension in the room, and her hands kept going to the bandages, ignoring the rough patch of scar tissue that was alongside the cheekbone area. It was red and firey looking, and as he looked down at her, he knew she would believe it destroyed her looks. He knew that was not true, but she would not be made aware of that knowledge. It would make other things easier for him to control.

The Doctor began to cut the first layer of bandage away. Sami called out once again for EJ. When she became a little too agitated, the sedative dose was administered again, it was calming, and it was designed to fog the memory as well.

"EJ is here little missy, he is waiting for you, you just let the doctor do his work, then you can see EJ and the family as well..quiet now..quiet.." the familiar voice did soothe her, and she floated once again on the cloud of euphoria, knowing soon she would see EJ, her children, everyone she loved once more.

Another layer came off, and as the light inside her gauzey world became a bit brighter, she tried again to come into full recognition, but once more the dosage was given to calm her down. The doctor cut another layer off, and unwrapped a bit more. Her lids blinked against the light, but still could not open. Her impatience was now overcoming the sedative, and she quietly told him, "Hurry, please , hurry."

Theo looked up at the balcony where he had caught another glimpse of the wheel chair man. That was what all the children called him, Wheel Chair Man. He tried not to let them see him, and it became a game among the children to try and spot him when he came out. They never let the duennas know, Theo knew instinctively that they should not.

"He is up there spying on us again!" Theo whispered to Justin. Justin knew he was not to look up, but find a way to sneak a look up the hill. He looked as he bent to pick up the ball they had been tossing about. Jessica was the next to look, holding up the shovel she had been building a sand castle with Kacie, and Ace to shield her face from looking directly at the spot Justin barely pointed his finger at..

"Wheel Chair Man is bastardo!" Ace was not at all reticient to say what he thought of the man. Of all the children, he was least affected by the change in their lives. He knew this place, he had spent much of his babyhood here. It had not been a bad time for him, he did not mind all that much. It was fun to have the others with him though, he had no playmates before, only the Bart Man.

He was bothered a bit by the baby crying in the night bothered him though, he seemed to be the only one who woke up at the sound. The duennas had made him return to bed last night when he had climbed out of his crib and opened the door to find where the sound came from. He had been looking up, the cry was coming from a top floor. He had never been up there before, but he knew if he was very quiet, he could get up there and see why the baby cried. Ace smiled to himself as he finished up his sand moat around his castle. Tonight would be a good time to go see the baby!

A cry of dismay escaped Samis lips as the last of the bandage was rolled away, and the flesh colored eyelid pads were removed. The light was blinding, and she blinked it away. Blurring figures floated in and out, but nothing distinct was visible to her. Fear caught hold of her as she tried to focus, and found she could not, no matter how hard she tried. She felt her chin being lifted, as a light was now shining directly into her eyes. It was not blackness, but it was still blindness..and it was just as frightening. The emotion she felt from the doctor also played into her fears..she could feel his pity!

**Chapter V**

Harris had slapped the phone shut for the third time, no answer again, and now his instincts were kicking in. Something was up at his house, and he was fearing for his son. Chandler was still giving television interviews with the commanders of the fire and police departments, and he had not been able to speak to her in over an hour when she had told him to call the house until Nanny answered.

"EJ, I need to send someone to check on my house, the phone is not being answered by the Nanny, Chandler is worried". Harris hated breaking into the wall of grief surrounding EJ, and he did not want to leave him alone, but EJ looked up, almost surprised to see that Harris was still there. EJ had really felt totally alone, an island in this sea of humanity rushing about, his eyes never straying from the sight of the now smoldering ruins of the pub.

"Harris, no..I will be fine..you go. Find out why, I don't want you to be uncertain, you must find out that your son is ok..in fact, make Chandler go with you. I see Chelsea over there, she can take over for your wife. I insist, no argument" EJ also felt uneasy over this development. All the descendants of the DiMera legacy were now unaccounted for. EJ knew no bodies had been recovered out of the Pub, he had kept a watchful eye on the emergency personnel, and the police department was now just an arm of his organization.

Chandler gave Chelsea a few quick instructions, confident that the young reporter was going to do fine, and she ran with Harris to the car.

"Really, she probably just has the phone turned way down, I am sure everything is fine, but thank you EJ, and I am praying for you now.."Chandler hugged EJ, giving everything she could into the embrace, trying to find hope in a hopeless time. He looked over the top of her head, shaking his own in doubt as he saw the firemen began to lift up debris, trying to find what he was praying would not be found within the pubs interior.

Hope had left Marlenas side to go to her husband and son. Bo was shaking with grief, and he sobbed into her arms. All she could do was be with him, letting him hold her for as long as he wished. Her heart too was broken, Caroline and Sean were as close to her as her own mother and father. It came sooner than she had expected, for she knew her husband well, he would have to find someone to place blame on, and she saw his sights land on EJ Wells.

"No, Bo, don't you have to listen to me for once!" she was holding onto his arm, as he angrily tried to shake her off and go to EJ.

"What? What Hope?" Bo was looking more furious by the second. "You know something happened that EJ had to pay for..only look who got in the way? My mother and father! He is behind this or the cause of it somehow..we all know it!"

"Bo..stop..Marlena just told me, Bo, Sami and the kids were inside the pub when this happened..my God Bo! His whole family is dead!"

Bo stopped..he looked at her in disbelief. "Sami..she was in there? The kids? Oh sweet Jesus, no..." again, Bo went through a grieving process. He and his niece had not been especially close, but when she had made it possible for Zach to come home alive, sacrificing her own freedom to do so, he had known the true measure of his niece. She had still married a DiMera, and that, he could not excuse. Now he realized all he had lost tonight.. so much of his family was gone now. That thought made him look at his wife and son, he reached for both of them, bowing his head in a prayer of thanks that he still had them, as well as Zach and Julianna.

Carrie came over to the group then, she had been busy with helping out at the firemans coffee station. It had been too hard to wait for news of Grandpa Sean, and her tears for Caroline were dry now, there had been too much to do. Hope reached to embrace her, saying, "Those poor babies, Sami, all of them..oh my God, Carrie, this is so awful!"

Carrie had forgotten the fact that Sami had been in the Pub with all the kids, but only one child was concerning her now! Katy...Katy had been in the back room with the others, with Caroline..where was she, where were all of them..where was Sami! In her preoccupation with Caroline, with Austin, and with Lucas, she had forgotten about all the others in the Pub this night. Finally, it was all too much for her to take in at all, and she had collapsed, Lloyd kneeling next to her, with a deep understanding of all she had gone through this night. The sun was just breaking the horizon, and an eerie quiet was taking hold.

All around them, the chaos was winding down. People were standing in small groups praying for the dead, the count was now at sixteen confirmed dead, with another seventeen people unaccounted for. Among those were Samantha Brady, her children, Justin six years old, Jessica his twin sister, Kacie, another twin girl of three, her brother Ace, also three, Theo Carver, age eleven, Sean Brady, seventy one...as she continued to read the list of the missing, Chelsea started to cry, losing her professional composure in front of the cameras. These were not just names to her, they were family members, friends, babies she had held and cared for, the very fabric of the soul of Salem was now torn apart with the terrible attack on the historic pub.

In the distance, the bells of St. Lukes Church began to toll. People were filing in to pray for those who had died, those who were injured, and for those who had seen their lives turned upside down in a matter of a few hours.

When the car turned up into the driveway, Harris heard Chandlers sharp intake of breath. She knew, felt, saw something was horribly wrong with the way the house looked. It was different, as though it had been violated, its trust misused...she could see that the house felt sad..and she opened the car door and ran for the front door screaming for her child! Her son! Her Baby...Liam! LIAM!!!!!!!!!!

**Chapter VI**

"Doctor Salvatore, I must admit I am disappointed. You said she would have no lasting effects, that her eyesight would be fine..now, she still cannot see..what is the reason for the misdiagnosis?" Piercing black eyes were fixed on the Doctor. He was only known to staff as Signor, and that was how he was always addressed.

"I assure you, Signor, she will be fine. It will be a matter of a few weeks, gradually the muscles will elongate again, and she will be fine." Hoping he sounded convincing enough, the cowering doctor regretted over selling what the patients recovery time would be. He had made it sound like it was only a matter of days, when he knew that was not the case.

"She is of no use to me with the handicap of blindness..you would not want me to have to dispose of her, would you Doctor. I see you all in the hospital seem to have made a pet of her. Not a wise idea. Now go, see to her, do what you must to restore her to her former self. The scar, though, lets wait a bit on that. I do want her to see it clearly when she is able to..that will be of importance to my plan."

Walking backwards out of the room, the poor man stumbled in his haste and fright. He wanted out of the presence of this sinister man. Was the money he was being paid worth the danger to his soul this place represented. Once out of the line of sight of the Signor, he had bolted to the room where the patient was again resting. From this day forward, he would measure her progress himself, and push it along as needed.

The children filed in to the room, hungry after the day of play, and eager to sample the meal being prepared for them. Anyone looking at them would have assumed that they were all docile little inmates in this beautiful prison, but that would have been a mistake.

Crying out for their mother had done no good, while the duennas seemed sympathetic, they would not respond to questions about her. Justin alone, had seen his mother being carried by one of the men to the floor above them. All of them banded together to pretend to cooperate, but each piece of information was added to what they already knew,

Grandpa Sean was taken downstairs, and they had not seen him, but they had heard the staff people grumbling about the old man, who was making all the racket. Theo was writing everything down in his notebook. He had learned from Chelsea that taking good notes was very important!

Ace had the ability to hide and remain unseen and unheard for hours, and the duennas were almost in awe of this little guy. He could speak fluently to them in Italian, so they learned it was unwise to have conversations in front of him. Who knew what he was retaining? Who knew indeed? The I.Q. test results that EJ had taken on him revealed an intelligence ten years beyond his age.

The first time Ace had crawled into the dumbwaiter and disappeared he had scared his siblings to death, but Theo had been full of admiration for the little guy. On this night when he had returned, crawling lightly past the sleeping nuenna, he had been grinning in triumph as he held forth the baby bottle as proof of his mission being accomplished!

"Bambino..I told you all, baby was here, crying I heard many times..now you believe me? I saw the baby..look at this!"

Jessica was first to take a look at the bottle, then she showed it to Justin. "This is Liams, remember, when Auntie Chandler brought him to see us, he had a bottle like this one!"

Justin knelt close to Ace, and asked him "The baby, has it got reddish hair?"

"The Baby has not much hair at all, but what there is, yes, it is orange colored..is that what you mean by red?"

This was not good news to Theo. His escape plan was getting more complicated by the minute, Mr. Brady was downstairs, Mrs. Wells was upstairs, and now a baby too! Flipping open his notebook, he wrote all this new information down.

Sean Brady had finished his daily tirade, and soon someone came in to see to his cell. For a basement cell, it had many comforts that Sean was not grateful for at all. If his freedom were to be taken, he did not want color television, or afternoon tea being served to him by a dumbwaiter precisely at four o'clock each day. This time, when the dumbwaiter bell jingled, he went to it, determined to throw whatever was sitting on that tray across the room!

When the door slid up, his brawny hand reached in and grabbed hold, almost tossing away what was there until he saw the curls atop the head of ACE!

"Good God Boy! What do you think you are doing?" Sean had looked behind him to make sure no one was looking as he peered in at the crouching figure of the mischievously smiling face.

Putting his finger to his lips in a shhhh motion, Ace handed Sean a small notebook and a pen. There was a note inside as well. He quickly read it, then in time honored IRA fashion, he had chewed it up and swallowed it. Ace looked at him in astonishment."Don't want the enemy finding out our secrets, now you take this one back up, and don't get caught!" Sean was elated, he now knew his great grandchildren were safe, and somewhere in this compound, his granddaughter Sami was well, just waiting on him to come to get her, and he vowed he would, or die trying!

Theo and Justin helped Ace climb out of the elevator, and when he proudly held out the note to Theo, all of them had huddled around to read what Sean had wrote!

"To my grandchildren., I am so happy to hear you are all safe, and your mother is safe, how these devils came to take us, is a mystery to me, but I swear, I will find a way to come to get all of you, your mother, and little Liam..I know who this devil is and I have never been beat by him yet! I will get word to you soon! Love Grandpa Sean.

When Theo finished reading it, Ace grabbed the note out of his hand and popped it into his mouth. He made a valiant effort, but try as he might, the paper gagged him, and he ended up spitting it out on the floor as he choked and spluttered.

"Just what was that about?" Theo queried.

"Don wan da enemee finding our secrets!" Ace spit out with the rest of the paper!

**Chapter VII**

His wife had collapsed against him when she had finally seen for herself the empty crib. As tight as he held her, she still managed to sink to her knees with the weight of her agony. She had seen enough in this one night to have brought an army surgeon to the ground, and she had not faltered, but this was the blow that took her will and her strength away.

Harris felt the weight of the blame, as he knew he had not taken the right precautions, but the woman had come out of the DiMera organizations file of trusted and screened personnel. What had gone wrong, and it was a case of willful kidnapping, as there was no sign of a struggle, which would have been expected. Nanny Bea was skilled in martial arts, firearms training, and evasive driving techniques, and this Nanny would have been no different! Obviously, she was a plant of some kind. His call to EJ was answered with the usual terse, "EJ here, what have you learned Harris?"

The question came from EJ as he was putting pieces of this puzzle together. Something did not fit, there were too many questions without answers that made any sense here. It was possible this was a pay back to Sean Brady from someone from his past with the IRA, or it could have been someone in the council ensuring the vote did not matter. EJ had rigged the vote so he would lose, then his plan had been to take out the council rather than follow its dictate to murder Samantha. Had they decided he should be shown who was really in charge? Hating himself for his hubris, and knowing his own sense of ego was probably the cause of all of this, he still managed to quiet the rage in his heart into a cold, iron, sense of purpose now. This all would be avenged, no matter the time, or the cost, his family would be avenged!

Hitting the motel television to try and bring it in focus, Lexie cursed it, slapping so hard at it, she injured her hand. None of what she had seen seemed real, and the laptop she had been given was now not working, it seemed the entire connection server system was down. The breaking news about the explosion in the waterfront district of Salem was on every channel, and she could not even get reception that lasted on even one of them! Figuring it had been long enough to have heard something, she decided to defy the orders of Harris and get into town. Running out, she was caught by a pair of strong arms, and she whirled about to fight at who ever had hold of her!

"Matt, you bastard! Let me go, I need to see what is happening, what if Theo was down by that explosion!"

He looked at her kindly, and waited a bit before deciding she should be told. The kid was her son, even though she was not exactly mother of the year material.

"EJ said to take you to the house, and no one is to see you yet Lexie, so come quietly, don't make me hurt you, ' his voice was calm, but left no room for argument, he would force her if he had to. " I will fill you in while we drive".

"Looks like whatever EJ had up his sleeve has backfired on him, is that what's going on? Did Tony outsmart him?" Lexie was defiant as always, and Matt could almost admire her for that.

"Tony DiMera is dead, this is not about him anymore".

"So the term the Phoenix Rises does not mean anything to you, huh? Well it should!" she hissed the words at him, not believing for a moment anyone had gotten the better of her brother. He was a devil, but he could always be counted on to cheat death. Just as her father had, and she would also. DiMera blood was almost insurance against death!

The hospital corridor was still flooded with guerneys of injured patients waiting to be looked at, and every medical facility within a hundred miles had sent assistance. The explosion had occurred at one of the worst possible times, when restaurant and bar patrons in the area were either just leaving, or just heading in for a nightcap. Couples often found their way there to stroll the pier, then walking along the area where the pub was situated, and this had been disastrous for so many of these young lovers.

Kate and Nico had rushed in, and Kate had cowered at the sight of so much blood and mayhem. The desk nurse had tried to calm her, but Kate was not one to be calm in the most ordinary of circumstances, and this was anything but ordinary.

Nico pushed her aside and demanded to know of the condition of Victor Kirakis, his first concern was for Victor. He managed to scare the poor woman enough that she pointed and stammered.."room 222, upstairs.." he muttered what could be taken for a thanks, then took hold of Kates arm to drag her with him.

"But Lucas, what about Lucas.." she pulled away and went to the desk again. "Tell me where my son is, Lucas Roberts, tell me now, or I am going to start screaming at the top of my lungs!"

Deciding it was best to get rid of this crazy woman so she could finish or try to finish the stack of charts that were still piling up, the nurse fished through it until she found the name.

"He is in surgery now, ma'am, besides his legs, he had some pretty serious internal injuries..please sit over there, we will call you when we know more". The nurse was kinder now, once she had seen the mother of this young man and how worried she looked.

Reality began to set in for Kate. Austin was dead. Lucas was horribly injured, and Victor was in here with a serious heart attack. Phillip..dear God..Philip, he was almost all she had left, she had to find him. She began running for the stairs to get to room 222, and Nico was on her heels.

"Mother, oh Jesus, Mother, they say he has to have a heart transplant, it is his only hope!"Phillip was crying like a baby in his mothers arms, and she was crying too, in relief at seeing him, probably the only son she would have after this horrible night ended. So intent on his presence, she had not heard his words at all. Victor mattered little to her, he was simply a means to an end, but the love she had for her sons was all encompassing and obsessive to a fault.

"Has he heard about Caroline" the first question Kate asked, as she had always known Caroline was first in Victor's heart.

"Yes, that is what brought this on..we got him revived with CPR, but the doctor says he has so much damage, he needs a new heart, and it has to be almost immediately.

Clearing his throat, the doctor entered the room and introduced himself to the family, announcing some news.

"You found a heart, this quickly? Doctor Curliss, that is fantastic, thank you so much!"

"There is a catch, the donor has a positive HIV status, but even so, the risks of waiting are worse than the fact your father will have to live with that. Without the transplant, he will be gone by tomorrow night!"

Kate felt the room whirl around her at what she was hearing. Her mind had already heard, digested, and catalogued what the doctor was telling them. Her son Lucas was also dead, and this monster was suggesting using his heart to keep this bastard alive!

It would not happen! She would never give permission for this! She voiced her opinion in no uncertain terms, until Phillip quietly reminded her.

"You have no say in this Mother, the decision to make belongs to Hana! She is his lawful wife!"

**Chapter VIII**

Opera music wafted through the hallways, eerie a tragic sound with no joy in the music at all. As her mind fought to get to a wakeful state, the infants cries started up again. This time Sami knew it was real, and she made herself sit up to try and find its' source. When she became aware of the pain from straining from the i.v, she stopped, staring down at the needle in her arm. It made her feel faint, and she knew there was a reason from long ago that she should react this way.

"Hey, now, missy, you are not supposed to be up yet, the doctor is coming in again in a few minutes to see you?" the blurred outline of the man bending over her was no longer comforting to her. A vague memory was returning, and it was not pleasant, a memory she associated with this voice.

Once again she asked for, this time with more insistence, "I want to see my husband now, bring him to me, or I am checking out of here right this minute!"

"You never change Samantha, that is what delights me about you! I could have you locked in a tower like Rebekka in Ivanhoe, and you would still order us about, as if you were a Queen. Aaah, but you are the Queen now, so how do you feel about being the one wearing the crown, the one I wanted your mother to wear once upon a time?"

"Who is there?" Sami was hearing but not believing the voice was real. She turned her face to the shadowed area the voice emanated from.

"Your reality is coming back to you now, so you know who I am. Search your memory, it is real, what you are thinking is real, I am real".

"Not possible, you have been dead so long, why is the baby crying? Whose baby is it? Where is EJ." Once again, the line between dream and wakefulness was indistinguishable as a bit more of the medication was put into her veins by the i.v. unit

Once the duennas had tucked them all in, and retired to their own rooms, blankets were thrown off as the children scrambled from their beds. Theo waited to hear the key turn in the lock, as each night they were kept within the room. The small night light they were allowed was used for all of them to look at the information Ace was bringing back each night.

Grandpa Sean had asked for them to find him a nail file or some type of tool that would be useful in picking the lock on his cell. Theo had looked all around for something like that, but could not find anything that worked.

"How about this?" and Jessica had produced a knitting needle taken from one of the duennas.

"Good job Sis!" Justin was looking at the little patch of knitting that Jessica had actually managed to do under the duennas patient tutelage. He seemed puzzled by the shape, and the number of gaping holes representing the dropped stitches that appeared every so often in the little bag.

Taking it out of his hands, she huffily told him, "Hey I was making you a marble bag, don't be mean!"

Sticking his fingers through one of the larger holes, he shook his head. "I woulda lost my best aggie in this thing, but nice thought!"

The bell on the dumb waiter jingled slightly, Theo had set a piece of cloth around the clanger to muffle it, now it was fairly silent when he returned. When he climbed out this time, Ace was quiet, as if he had been frightened by something.

Kacie took note of his mood first and went to him, taking his hand in hers. She offered him a piece of her orange she had saved from dinner, but he shook his head no. Orange was his favorite, and she looked at him puzzled, he often tried to sneak a piece of hers, and here she was offering of her own free will and he was saying no?

"What's wrong Acey," she asked him, her solemn brown eyes searching his face and waiting for him to tell them what was making him so quiet.

"Bastardo man got the Mama." Ace never referred to Sami as his mother, but as the collective Mama. Then Ace had grabbed the knitting needle to point it at his arm, imitating all the needles Sami had in her arms.

He took the pen from Theo, and the note pad from Justin. He drew three horizontal lines, and marked the third one. They knew he meant he had gone three floors up in the dumbwaiter.

"The Mama up there! The Bart Man there too, and Bastardo Wheel Chair man!"

Justin immediately came forward. "I want to go see her,"

Theo shook his head no, "You or I can't fit in the dumb waiter".

"Once it's quiet in the hall, I will go up the stairway, I will find her!"Justin was insistent, he had to find out if his mother was okay.

"The door is locked? How do you think you are gonna get it unlocked?"

Jessica came forward with the knitting needle, saying "We can try this, it might work. I watched a movie once where the crooks picked the lock, you just stick it in and squiggle it around a bit and hey!" the surprise she felt when the lock actually did give way shocked her.

The door opened slightly, but it was apparent that there was still a lot of activity out in the main hall. Staff, guards, and even people dressed in business suits were walking about. Closing the door again, they crouched down to plot their plan of escape. If Grandpa Sean found a way to get out of his cell, they would all just make their way down to the docks, get on a boat, and go back home. First they had to get their mother, and she and Grandpa Sean would take them home to daddy!

At last, the house seemed still, Justin had even dozed off while waiting, but Theo had taken it upon himself as the oldest to remain awake. When he thought it seemed quiet enough, he had shaken Justin awake, and out the door they had crept. The others were sleeping, no longer able to hold their eyes open, and Theo figured that was best. He had carried them all back to bed, with Justin helping him with Jess. He opened the door, and motioned for Justin to follow. Once they made it to the stairs, they would have to cover the three flights quickly, it was on the stairs they would have no place to hide if someone came. The hallways had many tables and screened areas to hide behind, but the stairs were wide open!

Justin turned and whispered, "I'll go first, so if anyone catches me, you run back to the room.!"

Being the oldest, Theo wanted to object, but Justin had already made it up to the first landing before he had gotten the words out. He looked up to see Justin motioning him to come up, quickly. The second floor landing had an enormous potted plant, and they both took advantage of it to hide as footsteps sounded on the stairs above them. Holding their breath, then letting it out in a collective sigh, they had watched as two women in nurses uniforms walked by, speaking in rapid Italian. When they had passed, the two boys made the run up the last flight of stairs, afraid to stop or look around, it was just enough to make it to the floor without being seen!

The apartment entry was wide open, no doors at all, so Justin walked in without any care at all. He could see the bed in the room down the hall, and as he inched closer, his eyes lit up, for lying there, breathing easily, and seeming like she was sleeping peacefully just as she would have been doing at home was his mother!

**Chapter IX**

EJ waited in his office for the police commander to come in with his reports. For the commander to be summoned in this way in any other city would have been looked at with suspiciously, but this was now EJ Wells' department in every way. The influence of the Brady family was long gone, and most people in the town did not seem to miss it. There was now very little crime, but if it did occur, it was quickly solved. EJ needed a peaceful town to raise his family in. Now he carried a burden of guilt for all of his plans had come to this. He no longer had a family.

Westin had been a good choice for Salem as police commander. Military training, several years in a detective division, and he was also a good administrator. He ruled with his head, not his emotions, and his family was the center of his life. Everything Abe Carver was not. EJ thought of Abe now, tethered to the Phoenix machine, destined to be kept there until Theo was old enough to not be weakened by him. It was hard, but it was the DiMera way. To EJ, Abes biggest mistake had been throwing Lexie aside after she had vowed to change. She should have been given the chance, but Abe and his pride stopped that from happening.

As EJ read the reports, his brow furrowed. Only three bodies had been recovered from inside the Pub, all grown up males. "What about my family? Why haven't they been found?"

"It is possible they, ..uh..well ..you know the heat, it could have been like the Towers, maybe there are no remains?"

"I refuse to believe my family is dead without some proof! Get a detail over there, and sift through that building until you can come back here either telling me conclusively my family perished there, or I will be conducting my own investigations privately. You know what that means!"

Westin understood.

Hope opened the door to her, ready to accept her well wishes, but Kate had no time for that, she was here on important business.

"Bo, thank God I found you! They want to pull Lucas off life support so Victor can have his heart..can you believe that? And Phillip is backing them up..Bo, get down there this instant and stop them! "

"My mother is lying in St. Lukes Church,a coffin, my father is burned to a crisp in the building, along with most of my nieces and nephews! Kate, do you think I care what is going on with Lucas and Victor? How can I stop them anyway, Lucas is married last I heard, so it seems his wife should be the one you talk to about this..now if you would care to sign the guest book, Hope, get her a pen, then you can be on your way."

Hope brought Kate over a cup of coffee, whereupon Kate reached into her purse to pull out her flask and pour a generous amount of whiskey into it. Bo could be pretty harsh at times, and Hope felt for Kates loss. She had one son dead, and another soon to be gone. If it had been Shawn or Zach it would have killed her too.

"Kate, you should be talking to Lucas's wife. She is the one who will make this decision, go to her, but remember, Victor is your remaining sons father, do you want Phillip to lose him? He is also Bo's father, and when Bo is calmer he will remember that, don't worry about what he just said, he does care about Victor" Hope was gentle as she spoke.

"Oh Hope, you don't understand, his wife is practically a heathen, she wears this shapeless moo moo thing all the time, with a rag covering her face. I can't wait to ship her back where she came from, the whole marriage is a travesty!"

Hope lost patience then, "She is his wife, if he married her, it must mean he loves her, and she loves him. Who cares what she is wearing. Kate, you and your insistence on interfering with your kids lives has never worked out for you or them." As she said this, Hope was opening the door for Kate to leave.

Once again, the haughty look replaced the desperate one as Kate picked up her purse and coat, saying, "I just remembered why I have never liked you!" one step ahead of the door slamming, Kate made her exit.

Tippin was organizing some tidbits and tea for the meeting going on in the Wells family room. When he entered with the tray, he fought back the tear that was threatening to roll down his stiff upper lip. There were so many reminders of the little folk in this room. However, he had his duty to attend to. Mr. Wells would count on him to keep things rolling until all was settled.

"Someone has them, they are not dead. I don't even think Caroline was a target, she must have not cooperated, or ran, something. Liam as well, so this is not the work of the council, at least taking them. It may be a ransom demand, and we just have not heard about it yet".

To Chandler, this was welcome news, but she still turned her head into Harris shoulder to cry again. EJ nodded to Tippin, who came to her immediately with a cup of tea. "This is a very special blend, a Nanny's recipe from way back. Drink it, you will feel much better."

"What would they want with so many hostages?, That seems hard to manage to me, and with one of them being Ace, they may have a Ransom of Red Chief on their hands." Matthew offered a small wry humorous observation. EJ looked at the portrait of the young hellion on the table, knowing exactly what Matthew meant.

"I am thinking if we get no ransom demand, there may even be another angle to this, what if someone knew of the council plans, and decided to interfere. Who ever this is might want these children protected..'

"And who might that be?" Lexie asked.

"Your father, Stephano DiMera!"

**Chapter X**

Snorting her disbelief, Lexie gave EJ a look of disdain. The others in the room knew showing disrespect like that to him was not a good thing, but EJ let her have her say. "You know my father is dead, that is why you have all of this.."she swung her arm around the room. "It should not be yours, but somehow you wormed your way into his good graces..God knows, I never made it into the inner circle! Guess I should have married a Brady!"

"Stephano has made the people of Salem think he has died many times, why would he have any problem doing it again? And if he thought he was really acting in the best interest of his legacy, this is something he would do..Lexie, you know in your heart this is a possibility, there has not been a single body found. I for one, prefer to think he is hiding all of them somewhere safe, rather than they are a pile of ashes inside that funeral pyre!"

Embracing his wife, Harris gave a sign of agreement. Matthew was thinking along the same lines, only Lexie expressed her doubt.

"Why should I believe you EJ? If that council vote had gone through, then you were going to lose..my vote would have ensured it. The council would have given you orders to do exactly what you did! I think you are lying!" She had finally lost it, and she went against him, swinging her hand in the arc of a woman slapping, aiming to inflict pain and humiliation. He caught her hand and pressed hard, waiting until her heard her cry of pain signaling her submission.

The phone rang, and Tippin brought it in, knowing EJ was accepting this particular call. "Dr. Ford here, letting you know that the wife of Lucas Roberts has consented to the donation of the heart. We will be doing the surgery on Mr. Kirakis within the hour. It is as you wished, and it looks like a viable match."

"What about the HIV status? When will we know if it is conferred?" EJ was still settling old scores, nothing was allowed to get in the way of things like that.

"Oh, he definitely will be positive, there is no doubt about that"

"Excellent..good work Dr. Ford. I am always amazed at how things have their own way of working out in the end". EJ had never planned on Lucas ending this way, but when his injuries were as serious as they seemed to be, it almost seemed the kindest way. Austin had died too, unfortunate, but Kate was now feeling the pain she seemed to think was her duty to keep inflicting on Samanatha. Her family now consisted of Phillip, who would be be busy keeping his father alive, Billie, who really had no use for her, Chelsea, who still had secrets to keep from Kate, and a grandson from a daughter in law that Kate also despised. As EJ had said to Dr. Ford, things did have a way of working out.

A hospital waiting room is a terrible place for those in it. They have the burden of the wait, while the patient only has one thing to think about. Living or dying. Victor was thinking about living, and he was grasping at life with everything he had left, which was not much. If it had been a heart from a completely healthy donor, Dr. Ford would not have wasted it this way. But Victor was older, so the thought of living his life with HIV was not a huge concern. The board had okayed the surgery with few objection. Mr. Kirakis was a member, and he told them to go ahead. He needed to buy the time Phillip would need.

Of course, Lucas may have survived a bit longer , if a few other medical interventions had not been taken by the well paid Dr. Ford. Mr. Wells took care of his own. Guilt might have intervened in Dr. Fords decision, but looking at the young man, both legs gone, and his blood tests showing the T cells he had growing weaker under the onslaught of the HIV that was working against him had helped him along in his decisioin. This was really the kinder way out, as he had fed the solution into the tube of his i.v.

Kate sat and glared at everyone else in the room. Hana, the bitch who had signed the order, Phillip, the son who was willing to betray his brother for a father who would have disowned him at birth had she not begged him to let them stay, and of course, Annalies, the blonde Swiss whore who even now was holding onto Phillip as if he were her lifeboat. If she thought for one moment she would end up keeping Austins son away from her, she better think twice! Sami had tried that and look what happened..then Kate remembered what had happened. It had ended with Will dying, but Kate quickly shook off any feelings of guilt she may have had over that. Time proved out that it was all EJ's fault!

The doctor came out to them, almost smiling, but trying to remain as respectful as possible as he told them, "The harvest went very well, he went very peacefully, and the heart is on its way up to the team working on Mr. Kirakis as we speak?"

Hearing the word harvest spoken about her son brought Kate to her knees in a spasm of grief. She had never thought of it as a harvest! My God, how could medical personnel be so heartless? Phillip came over to her, trying as hard as he could to make her feel any better.."Mom, he went peacefully, and now his heart is going to give Father new life, and hope..isn't that better than it just rotting away in his corpse when he is buried?"

She looked at her son in disbelief at his words, not wanting to hear that about her dead son. "I hope," she spit out at him, "You are not trying to make me feel better!"

Disgust at her was his reaction. With her it was always about Lucas, then Austin, and he came a distant third was how Phillip felt. Leaving her, he went to Annaliese. This woman had lost her husband, and was left alone with a young son to raise. Phillip had already decided that she would not have to worry about being taken care of. She was attractive, and he knew she could bear children. He could do worse, and so could she. He could tell by the way she was looking at him, she had the same thought.

A different story was going to be written for Lucas's widow. She was not made to live in this country, and she had made no effort to fit in. The clothes, the always going into her closet to pray, none of it was going to work in the Kirakis world. Besides, she carried the disease, and Victor would not want her around reminding him of her condition. An unfortunate accident may be in her future. Phillip pulled out his blackberry to note in it: Hana, May 15.

**Chapter XI**

The light stroking of her face was pleasant, and Sami turned her face into it, rubbing her face against the small hand she knew so well. Justin often woke his mother up on Sunday mornings this way. It had been his habit to sneak in, and wake her up so she would come downstairs and read the funny papers with him. He knew he was probably getting a bit big to want to sit and cuddle with her, but it still was something he liked, and was not ready to give up. He was not sure what day this was, but his mother knew, as she woke up and smiled.

"Did you bring the paper in?" she was looking at him as if they were both back home, her safe in bed with Dad, and him quietly summoning her to their weekly ritual. Then his fingers went to the area on her cheek that covered about three inches of her face in a swollen redness.

"Mom, does that hurt?" Justin was concerned that she was in pain, but truth was, the burn had gone deep enough that the nerves were a bit damaged, and though she felt his fingers on her face, it was through a numbness. For the first time she herself reached up to feel the uneven bumpiness, and her vanity took over.

"Justin, bring mommy a mirror please! I have one on my bureau". Justin looked at her in confusion, as he knew he was not at home, how come she did not? Then it struck him as he looked about the room. Except for the hospital type bed she lay in, and still was not aware of, this room did look like the bedroom she shared with Dad. He walked over to the bureau, and sure enough, a silver handled mirror lay next to the hairbrush he had seen her use nightly so many times. He hesitated, he did not want her to use the mirror. Something was not right with her, and his instinct was to stall.

He could see all the tubes that were hooked up to her, with bags of fluid attached, but his mother took no notice. She seemed to believe she was at home, and the next time she spoke confirmed it.

"I guess your Dad got up to go out for a run, funny, I did not hear him leave." Then she noticed Theo for the first time.

"Good morning Theo, my, you are up early too. Have you been down to breakfast yet? This is waffle day! Go on down, and have Tippin order you up your favorite kind!" Then Sami had attempted to sit, which was a trigger mechanism for more medication to be realeased.

She slumped back down onto the bed, and was fast asleep again. The whirring sound coming from the next room caught the attention of Justin and Theo. A clanking sound, then they could see..it was an elevator door, and it was beginning to open! Both of them dived under Samis bed, and tried to blend into the floor!

The wheelchair man was being pushed into the room by a figure clad in white shoes, and stockings, with a white unform. Theo inched out a bit, he wanted to see the face attached to the legs, but Justin pulled him back. The wheelchair was pushed right up against the bed, and it was apparent the legs were straining to enable his arms to reach up to his mother. This made Justin tense and squirm, trying to stop this, but now, Theo was the one to grip his arm, and make a pleading look for calm with his eyes.

"This will soon be gone, my Dear, I cannot allow this to mar your beauty. So much like your mother in some ways, but thank God not all ways! It is almost time for us to make you more aware of what has happened. I saved you all, you know. If not for my intervention, everyone would have died. Now, I must be repaid for my help. That is how it is done. Favors are returned, wrongs are avenged. This is the DiMera way. Now I must leave you, sleep well, you have earned it, as I have earned mine." When the wheelchair man had finished speaking, he seemed to pause, as if sensing something within the room.

Theo felt it, as if he had known what the man was thinking too. Why, he could not say, but it was something that he sensed. These premonitions had been coming to him since his grandmother had been killed, but now were becoming stronger. Theo know somehow the man seemed to be aware of their presence, but he did nothing, just had his attendant wheel him back to the elevator.

The two boys came out of hiding then, and went to inspect this elevator. It had a key activator, but when Theo examined it, he knew it could be jimmied, and he looked about the room for something to use. A small allen wrench next to the equipment Sami was hooked to seemed perfect, and he pocketed it. Using the elevator was too dangerous now, but it might be useful later..

They made it back to the room, and Justin hugged onto his siblings..he had such good news! Only Ace did not seem enthused, just matter listening in an offhand way as Justin told of seeing and speaking with Mom!

"I want to see her too, next time I go with you!" Jessica was in her stubborn mood, one of the traits she had inherited from her mother.

Theo spoke,"It is too risky, Jess, and they have her hooked up to all kinds of stuff, I think they are keeping her on some kind of sleeping medicine!"

Kacie listened, and for a three year old, she had some memories no child should have. "you pinch the tube to make it stop!"

"What do you mean, show us!" Justin was as sure as Theo that the tubes in his moms arm was doing something to her, but he did not understand what Kacie meant.

Kacie looked over to the snack table, and saw the straw holders. She ran over and picked out one of the juice straws and showed them.."like this" and she pinched the straw as if it was a piece of medical tubing. Kacie had been hooked to these things for so long while she was in hospital, and had seen the nurses clip off her i.v. tubes many times to move the needle to an different spot, or to change out the bags. Sometimes when they clipped it off, she had either started feeling pain, or had woke up and felt better.

"I think she has something here guys!" Theo was clear on what they had to do. He gathered them all in a little circle on the floor and began to tell them his plan!

**Chapter XII**

Carolines funeral morning had broke bright and clear, as if everyone saying good bye to her had a right to do so in the same way she had lived her life, open to the sun. Victor sat in his hospital room, as alert as he had been in days, and watched the proceedings on television. The news crews had decided the burial of the woman who had been the heart of the Brady Pub for so many years was something worth covering. Scowling at the sight of the news vans camped outside St. Lukes Cemetery, Victor reached for the pitcher at his bedside to pour a glass of water when his visitor stopped him, and poured it for him.

"Hana, thank you, but really, you don't have to stay here with me all the time, you need to be at home getting some rest". He looked at her kindly, she had been with him almost continually since he had woke up from the surgery. It would normally have made him uncomfortable and irritated, but now, he found her presence soothing, and when she reached to grasp his hand, he was pleased. It was strange, he realized,, but she was the one who calmed him while he watched his beloved Caroline go to her final resting place.

"You have the heart now of my Lucas, you are good man now, like he was. I stay with you ok?' and Hana had sat with him while the news played the funeral, while the faces of the townspeople who had loved her came and went, some talking to the cameras, some refusing.

Bo Brady has stopped in front of the cameras and scowled. When a reporter tried to push a mic in front of his face he has erupted, which was what the newspeople lived for!

"You slimy bastards, let us bury her in peace! Go shove your camera in that mans face"Bo pointed to EJ, "He caused this! He has done so much evil in this town, we will never know it all, and it didn't matter to him that he killed his own wife and kids in the process!"

"Mr. Brady! You mean to say you think EJ Wells may be responsible for this tragedy? But hasn't the Police Commander said they have no suspects in this case? " the question posed, brought Bo's other tirade.

"He owns the police now, and he probably owns you too!" Bo hissed the words, then pushed his way through, shielding Hope and his children from any more of the hurt that the press was adding onto.

EJ saw the reporters heading his way, and steeled himself, readying his noncommittal smile reserved for most idiots. Beginning with Bo Bradys accusation, all the way through to asking him about his current standing and connections to the DiMera Empire, EJ remained the calm, but grieving funeral guest, only her to pay respects to his wife's grandmother, the great grandmother of his children. When they pushed him as to when he would be having services for his own family, he had looked at them with the cold and deadly eyes of a snake, saying only "We will discuss that when any and all remains have been recovered, now please excuse me!"and he had entered the church.

John observed EJ from the vestibule as he entered. This was not a man who was used to showing grief, or this was not a man grieving. Something in his demeanor made no sense. Harris not being here was another question. He loved Sean and Caroline, so why was he missing? John escorted Marlena to a place, close to the rest of the family there to bury their mother, grandmother and friend.

Matthew sat next to Chelsea, holding her hand. He knew she should have been sitting with her dad, and her half siblings, but like Sami, she had a tenuous welcome in that little grouping at best. Zach returning from the dead had not been enough to make them include her in the bosom of the family, and now she was not inclined to push things anymore. Then he had seen her face light up! In through the church doors came a woman Matt had heard about, but never met. It was Billie Reed, Chelsea's mother, and he could see the resemblance between the two. They were both dark eyed beauties, both with a sadness in their eyes so much of the time. Billie came to Chelsea and gave her a warm embrace, then looking at Matt, waiting for her introduction.

Phillip Kirakis escorted his mother in, she was having difficulty walking, and it was now apparent, she was over sixty. The past years had left a mark, and the alcohol that she was now addicted to was taking a toll on her looks. Her face was marred with blotchy red spots, and her eyes had a rheumy look to them when she removed her sunglasses. She was still a handsomely haughty woman, but now she seemed to be weighted down with grief, having just buried two of her sons the day before. Now, once again in the same church the services had been held for Austin, and the mutiliated Lucas, she stumbled, only to be kept upright by Phillip and Nico.

The full Brady contingent was there, Kayla and Patch, who now resided in New Orleans, where she ran a clinic for the poor, and Patch worked on redevelopment housing for the still displaced hurricane victims. Both projects had been heavily funded by EJ Wells.

Stephanie had left the racing circuit, accompanied by her fiancé, another racer to attend, and since EJ was her sponsor, she had stopped to wish him well, and say he was also in her prayers.

Kim also made a showing, one of the few she would ever make again in Salem. Her illness was progressing faster now, and she was making the pilgrimage now to pay her last respects to her mother, her father, her family, and the town. No one knew she was dying, and she did not want to share that news with anyone, they would all know what they had to know soon enough. Her son Andrew was in Iraq, and her ex husband Shane Donovan was working still with the ISA, and they were the only ones who were aware of the tumor now invading her brain.

The sobs in the church were beginning even before Father Jankins made his way to the podium. The favorite hymns were being sung by the choir, when Harris made his way into the church. His love for Caroline had made him appear, even though Chandler was home, trying to work through the week that had passed. No one was being told of Liam's disappearance, it was to be announced tomorrow, as a Nanny kidnapping. Harris had left her, saying "I hafta do this, for her and Pop Sean".

He made his way to the choirs section, and took the mic, nodding to the music director to begin on of Carolines favorite hymns, "when lilacs last in the dooryard bloomed" and when he had finished the last of the song, the tears had began a flood down his ruddy and handsome face.

**Chapter XIII**

Father Jankins had finished his liturgy, and had spoken out about how he had come to know and love Caroline. It was an unstructured service, which was how Caroline had asked to be remembered in her will. So when the call went out for those in the audience who wished to say a few words in rememberance, EJ was the first to stand and ask for the floor.

The crowd in the church let out a collective murmur, some of dismay, some of gratitude, and some of curiosity. Carrie reached out for Marlenas hand in anger. She could not help her anger towards EJ, Katy was dead, if she had been with her, Carrie knew she would still be alive.

EJ ignored the look her got from Carrie, he ignored a lot of the looks he was getting, but when he began to speak, his words were listened to.

"There is no one here who has not been touched by this woman, in some way or another. Greatness was found in all the little things she did for so many, and I am no exception. Caroline Brady gave me what so many have always denied me. Acceptance. I am not a perfect person, she still loved me. I have made mistakes, she forgave those. This was also what she gave Samantha, my wife, her granddaughter.

If Samantha were here today, she would be remembering an abiding love that was showered on so many by this woman. Samantha would be the first to say that her Grandmother was a person who forgave much.

I run an organization that was founded by a man who many in this room feared and despised. I understand that, but when I married into this Brady legacy, I gave up wanting the world to fear me, I wanted respect. The kind of respect given to this woman who we are taking to her final rest today is something that cannot be bought or bargained for, it is earned on a daily basis. She has earned mine.

I have taken the podium today to ask for your prayers, and your good wishes in what I am about to reveal. As of now, I renounce any ties to the DiMera organizations, I will be severing ties with any and all business entities associated with them! Furthermore, I am giving notice to any and all who may be listening..my family is alive! I believe Sean Brady and Theo Carver to be alive as well, and I am asking all here who want to join us, help us bring them back alive!

As many of you have heard, there has been a power struggle within the DiMera organization, by some who think I may not be the right person to head it. They may be right, as my desire to run an Evil Empire is waning. I wanted a decent life for my children, I want a decent town for them to grow up in. I want a world where they have a chance, and their children as well. I think my association with the scientific community and my investments in the coming race to save the world from global warming has worried some in the organization that I may not have the right stuff.

EJ paused to let all this sink into the minds of the crowd. Then he spoke again,

"Harris, my loyal and steadfast ally in all of my work here in Salem has also suffered during the past few days. Besides the love he had for both Caroline and his grandfather,Sean Brady, he is now suffering another unbearable loss. He an his wife, Chandler, have been the victims of another crime we think is the work of the DiMera Organization. Their infant son, Liam, has been kidnapped from their home, the same night of the horrible tragedy that took Caroline Brady from us.

We are all suffering in this terrible week. I am reaching my hand out, to all of you who have mistrusted me in the past, I want us to work together. This is all our family that is out there somewhere waiting for us to help bring them home, make them safe again, to let them come and say their goodbyes to this woman.

Look into your hearts, what would Caroline want her deaths legacy to be? That we all continue to hate and distrust each other? Plotting our little plans of revenge or one upmanship? I think I have known her well enough to say she would want this:

Please, bring my husband home. Bring my granddaughter, Sami home, bring her children home, bring Harris and Chandlers child home, Sean and I love them all so much.

For that was Caroline Brady's message to us all.

Love one another, be kind to one another, help one another." EJ finished, and walked over to Bo Brady, he extended his hand, but Bo brushed it aside, instead pulling EJ into an embrace that welcomed him to the family, while whispering in his ear, "If you meant all that, I want to help you bring Pop and your family back to Salem! I'm in brother!"

John and Marlena both left their pews, and Steve and Kayla followed. Harris came to give EJ backup, with Matt and Chelsea close after. Kim followed, a tad weakly as she was now dependent upon a cane for steadying her walking. She had explained the cane to those who asked by saying she had sprained an ankle recently. Carrie had held back, but as she saw the circle of Bradys tightening around EJ, with Hope hugging him in congratulations, she had to come too. Lloyd stayed back, letting her into the circle of the family, not wishing to force himself in.

John was the first to voice it, the fear that everyone had, but did not want to say aloud. "So does it look like the Phoenix may have risen up from the ashes once again?"

Harris looked at EJ, waiting for him to say the words first.

"If he has not, then my family is dead. I pray he has come back, for at least then we know it is not just money that is the cause here, Stefano would only do something like this for the sake of the family, not the destruction of it!"

Steve was next to speak, and Kayla nodded her approval. "If you need me, I'm with you on this. I want my niece and her kids brought back safe, and the old man too! I never much took to you Squire Crumpets, but I got your back on this caper!"

Kim introduced herself to EJ, "Sorry I never made it out to your wedding, wow! The first one with Sami that I actually really missed something! I just want you to know, I will make sure that Shane gives you whatever help he can too. I think having an ISA senior operative should give you some assistance, huh?" her eyes twinkled as they always had, but EJ could see she was in some pain. He resolved to have her medical condition looked into. He was still maintaining most of his connections after all!

John stepped forward, but Marlena was still uncomfortable with EJ, she knew he probably would never forgive her for what she had done. She was wrong. Now he wanted all the help he could get, all the support he could get.

"Marlena, or Doctor Evans, which ever should I call you? Kacie still has medical issues to face, we must get her home..please, John, Marlena, will you join with us to help bring that about?"

"Partner, I thought you would never ask!"

**Chapter XIV**

Pacing back and forth in his cell, Sean Brady waited for the sound of the dumb waiter coming down again. When he heard the whirring sound that meant it was en route, he looked to see if anyone might be about, seeing the coast clear, he opened up the door to take out his meal, and greet his great grandson once more.

Ace sat crouched, looking up at the old man. The notes being passed back and forth had given the kids instructions to explore the island, and see if any vessels that could be used to get away were moored close enough to get to

"Hey, little fellow! What do you have for me today?..Wonderful, I knew there had to be some boats around here somewhere! Tell Theo good job, these are the numbers I need, I know several of these types, and this one here will suit us perfectly! Just the right amount of room, and a little bit of speed.!"

As a group, the children were given pretty much run of most of the small island that was unfenced. The area where the boats were moored was between a small lighthouse bordered by a quay, and when the tide was out they were able to wade out where the boats were anchored. If the tide was in, it was impossible, as the water was at least ten feet deep, but at low tide the duennas let the kids walk out, checking out the fishing boats belonging to some of the locals who lived the other side of the island in the old villages. Sadly, most of the fishing was played out, and the ones who made a living on the island now made it in some way working for the man who lived in the big castle on the hill. The boats were now mostly in disuse and in need of repairs.

Theo had diligently walked around most of them, noting make, year, and engine size from the markings Sean had written up for him to look for, now Ace was delivering the information to Grandpa Sean.

Ace brought the information each day at the afternoon tea that was sent down to Sean. Ace was glad to do it, that was when the best cookies were put on the tray, and he always managed to stuff a few in his pockets. The duennas were very insistent that the children not have too many sweets, so these cookies were a treat for all of them when he brought them back.

Sean was beginning to see the way of the great escape. .He had used the knitting needle on the rust covered lock on his cell, and with a bit of jiggling, he could get the cell door open. Sean had many times picked a lock on a jail cell, and he was glad to see it was like riding a bicycle, once you learned, you never forgot how! His prior association with the likes of Stefano DiMera was still paying benefits. Pride in his great grandchildren was also growing, as well as in Theo Carver. The children had devised their own plan for getting their mother out of the confines of the castle and Sean had laughed with delight when he heard what they planned. It was just simple enough and devious enough to work perfectly!

This time, it would be Justin and Jessica who made the foray into their mothers room. It was also decided they would try the elevator, if they were caught, they planned to cry they got lost, the house was so big, and it was an accident. Jessica was a natural born actress, so it was decided she would do the wailing and Justin would just stand by, and pat her as if comforting her if they got caught! Kacie told them what they needed to find, they needed some of the shot sticks, and if they could find it, any vials of the small bottles of medicine that the nurses would use on the bags in Mom's i.v. If they could get that back to her, it would be easy to make the duennas very very sleepy!

Lately, the children had all developed a game to give them a chance to get more familiar with the castle, and to make the duennas think it was just children being children! They would scatter themselves in the hallways, each of them running a different direction, causing the duennas to shriek and chase them, often calling on other staff members to catch them up. Most of the staff was good natured about it, as the children were mostly a friendly bunch, save the young blonde boy! They knew he could be dangerous to catch, as he had a ready kick, and sharp little teeth. The advantage to that was, Ace got the furthest away, and he was the one who found the elevator entrance for the nursery floor!

He saw them put the wheel chair on it, then the doors closed. Not waiting to be caught by the other staff, he had boldly gone right into the room the wheel chair had been brought out of and came out spinning the wheels on another chair, barreling right down on the ones who had just seconds before been chasing after him! His little arms had been pumping the wheels as fast as he could, before he noticed the little panel of lights on the side! Pushing one, he found the wheels going by themselves, and the chasers soon became the chased as he had laughed with delight! The melee of catching up to him, and replacing the chair in the room where it belonged had made the staff not think about all that Ace would have observed on his little adventure.

And so it was that on this evening, Justin and Jessica were able to use the elevator to go up to their mothers apartment once again.

"Mom, it's us, Jessica and Justin, wake up now, " the tube had been pinched off as Kacie had said needed to be done, and minutes later they were rewarded by the sight of their mother's beautiful blue eyes waking up to her two oldest children sitting at her bedside. It took her a moment to come fully alert, but once she did, she seemed to be alarmed at something.

"You can't let him find you here! What are you doing?" Sami and her semi conscious state of the past couple of weeks had gradually been coming more and more into focus. The conversations she had heard in her twilight sleep now became clearer, as her mothers instinct for protecting her children came into play.

"Please, go back, go back now!' She was hugging them to her, and pushing them away at the same time.

"Mom, no, we have to take you out of here!..We are going to to it tomorrow! All of us are leaving..even Papa Sean! On a boat Mom, back to Daddy!" Jessica wanted to make sure her mother knew what was happening.

"Mom, I am going to fill up these medicine bags with just water ok? So they can't make you stay sleepy anymore..Jess, find the clamps to put on them, nothing will go in your arm now Mom..you are going to be safe now, so you just pretend to be asleep ok! We are going to come and get you soon!"

Justin quickly dumped the i.v bags out, refilling them with just water, at the same time placing a small clamp under her wrist bandage. To keep the nurses from knowing that none of the liquid went into her arm, he made a small slit in the tubing with a small knife taken from his dinner tray. The liquid would drip out onto the floor, so he put a towel down to catch it. They had to make sure she stayed awake until they came to get her!

Sami watched all their preparations, amazed at how brilliant her children were! They told her that Papa Sean had told them a lot of what they had to do, and how Ace went back and forth with the notes of the plans! It was going to be foolproof! In no time at all they would all be off this island heading back to Salem!

**Chapter XV**

By the time Jess and Justin stole away from their mother, the three of them had gotten all the details of their plan down exactly. Nothing could go wrong, and they would get the duennas clothing up to her during the night. When they undressed for bed, they were going to steal their clothing, one set for Grandpa Sean to wear, and one for their mother! Ace would get the set down to Grandpa, and Theo and Justin were going to take a set to Mom! The tea the duennas drank would have the medicine that was being given to Mom, so they would sleep! Papa Sean would get out of the cell, and make his way up the stairs looking like the servant that came to clean.

It was so beautiful in its simplicity. They would all then walk down to the quay, push one of the boats out to the higher tide area, start up the motor, and out to the sea they would go! Sean knew that they had to be close to a shipping lane of the Mediterranean, Stefano always retreated to his Italian roots when he wanted to hide out. It would only be twenty or thirty miles at most, and they would find cruise ships or tankers that would pick them up.

The night was a humm of activity in the nursery, as the duennas slept like two oversized angels in their room. Kacie was busily putting pillows with the heads of various dolls into the beds to make it look like they were all snug in their beds when the duennas came to wake them, if the duennas were able to wake themselves!. The tea they drank had been heavily laced with the medication from Samanthas medical supplies. During the night Kacie and Jessica had added to it by slipping in, and giving them even more with an injection. Kacie had been very observant during her hospital stays, and impressing Jessica so much that her sister had said "you should be a doctor when you grow up!"

Theo and Justin had made several visits to the elevator, sending it up to the apartment suite several times, and once to Liams nursery. The duenna assigned to Liam was a problem, so now the plan was to see that Liam woke up and began crying a lot. When she went to fix the bottle, they would put the baby into the dumbwaiter and send him to the nursery downstairs. That seemed to be the best shot.

"How will you make him cry?' Kacie had a soft heart and was worried.

Ace held up a safety pin, and grinned.

"You boys are so mean!"

Jessica concurred, but agreed it was the best way to make the baby scream bloody murder, and demand for attention now!

Theo thought a moment, "But we must make him stop crying and be quiet while we get away, how can we do that".

Kacie gave a sad look, knowing how it felt to always have needles pricking at you, and she went to one of the small syringes, and pointed at the medicine bag. She filled one, and told Ace, "you are gonna be with the baby, do this!" and she went to pick an orange out of the fruit bowl and showed him how to do an injection.

Sean heard the dumbwaiter coming down, giving a quick look around to see if anyone was within earshot. It was eerily quiet, no one had been down to him in hours, and someone usually came at least once an hour. Stefano must be slipping in his security was all Sean could think. When it opened, Ace was there, next to a small pile of black clothing. He took them out, slipping them over his own clothing, topping it off with the black headscarf.

"Ace, me boy, how do I look?" Sean had twirled around for effect.

Giggling, the blonde haired tyke gave a thumbs up, handing over the not from Theo with the directions on how to get through the house to the nursery. As usual, after reading it, Sean put it in his mouth, chewed the paper, swallowing the note.

Ace looked at him with admiration. He had tried and tried, but paper just would not go down his throat, gagging him every time. Theo had now made sure when any note was handed to him by Ace, he hurried to burn it at a candle. It would not do for Ace to get sick and the duennas come running to see what was the matter!

Sami also was getting dressed in the duennas clothing at this time. The dress was yards too large for her, trailing the ground, and threatening to fall beneath her bosoms. Jessica looked about and saw the drapery tie backs. She took them, and fashioned a makeshift belt for her mother, then led her to the elevator to meet with the others.

In a matter of an hour, the children had accomplished most of the rendezvous necessary for the escape. Papa Sean was there in the room with them, their mother was there, nervously hugging all of them, asking how they were, and trying to keep her scar hidden with the scarf. The baby was sleeping soundly, Kacie was keeping watch over him like a mother hen. All was going as planned.

The screens in the security room were showing all of this, and the figure in the wheelchair was laughing heartily. This had been the greatest amusement he had witnessed in so long.

"I am so impressed with all of these kids, what DiMera spirit! Have you ever seen anything like this Bart?"

"Boss, they are all keepers! I agree with you all the way!"

"I know, but we have to stop their fun now, before they hurt themselves, what if they gave the baby too much of the medication, get a doctor here right away!" 

**Chapter XVI**

It was three days of getting the Fancy Face II together that kept the four men busy. Bo was agreeing to this, only if he was going as the captain of the ship, and all who sailed with him agreed to follow his orders. EJ was amenable to it, Harris had no objection, the one who objected the most was John. He felt as the senior one, the one who had the ISA experience, and the knowledge of how Stefano DiMera worked, he should be the one in charge of the mission.

EJ had talked in private with John, showing him that since Bo was the more experienced sailor, he would be the one who handled the running of the boat. John would be given the main say in how to deal with Stefano when and if the time came for negotiating. As for any moves to gain the captives, EJ wanted to have the power of veto. This was after all his family they were trying to save, along with the infant son of Harris. Everyone had some voice in it, but he was willing to let Bo dictate how matters and duties would be delegated onboard the Fancy Face.

They figured it would be a ten day sail to get near the island that EJ remembered as being the one Stefano favored. It now seemed the death of Stefano had once again been greatly exaggerated. But each of the four had a different scenario as to what Stefanos motives had been for remaining out of the spotlight for the past few years.

Bo figured he had laid low to once again exert his power over the town of Salem. For whatever reason, the deal he had made with Sami was being reneged on. If the deal had ever had any real meaning to him anyway. To Bo, the book she had written was just a betrayal of her own family to serve Stefanos ends. It would not be the first time that Stefano had used someone to wreak his havoc for him. Now the end result could be seen. His mother, Caroline was dead, his Pop, Sean was missing and maybe even dead. Sami and the kids also missing. For what? Because they were of Brady stock!

Having been used for years by Stefano, John also knew Stefano would have his own motive for staying hidden. John was not of Bo's mindset. Too much time had gone by for Stefano to use this as some kind of revenge on the Bradys. If that was the case, Sean would have been found dead along with Caroline. Why not Sami dead as well since she was the daughter of his hated enemy Roman Brady. No, Stefano had seen that these people had been saved for some other reason. Not only that, but he must have known that EJ would come for them That was the kind of man he was. John admired that in EJ, but he hated what EJ was willing to do to follow the will and testament of a man who had done so much harm in the world, to so many people John loved.

Harris was a man on one mission only. His son had been taken from the safe confines of his own crib, by one who had been trusted to care for him. There was no reason good enough in his mind to want anything but to kill whoever was responsible. Promising Chandler that he would get Liam back or die trying had been all he would say to her. Her tears had not moved him except to harden his resolve as to what he had to do.

As EJ stacked piles of provisions on the boat, he too had his own thoughts of why Stefano had acted in this manner. He had often suspected that Stefano might have just had himself hooked up to the Phoenix machine and retreated to a world where he no longer had to make decisions or interfere with the day to day operations of his empire. His island had always been a place he felt safe, and in some ways even loved by its inhabitants that he provided a livelihood for. The ring on EJ's finger was a promise he had made to the man, now did Stefano think that EJ had betrayed his trust? Or was it in the fact that the council had been allowed to think for itself? EJ was certain, Stefano wanted something done about the council, and this was his way of brutally seeing that EJ got the message.

Jumping over to the dock, Bo reached out for a hug from Hope. Julianna was standing, her hand held by her big brother Zach, now dressed in his baseball uniform. He looked up at his dad, before asking, "You coming to the game today, Pop?"

Hope looked at Bo, giving him a "you better say yes to that" look, and Bo ruffled the carrot topped boy on the head.

"Of course I am, and I expect you to hit one out of the park for me, cause it will be awhile before I can see another game. This time out, I will be gone for a couple of weeks, but we plan on a pretty big catch!"

Knowing it was no good to try and talk him out of this, all Hope had said to him was "You be careful Brady! Bring them back! I love you, and I love you for doing this. Your dad would be so proud..I am so proud of you. We need them all back home. Salem needs them all back home!"

EJ had walked up behind them and had overheard what Hope had said. He smiled a welcome at her, she had always been someone he admired.

"We are not going to fail, Hope, everyone is going to come home with us!" EJ said, as he expertly tied off a load, and secured it to the deck of the boat.

Bo had been surprised at the talent EJ had, not expecting a city boy to be so sure of himself in the knots needed to tie off the boats supplies, and gear. He had gone over as soon as he saw EJ tie off something to inspect, and found he had done a perfect anchor bend knot, as good as any ever shown him by his own Pop.

EJ had seen Bo try and find fault with it, and walked over to whisper, "I was taught to sail by the man we are going to try and kill..probably as you were by your Pop. Stefano does have his good points Bo, I remember them."

Seeing the little exchange, John had sidled over to Harris, "I hope we can keep those two from trying to throw each other overboard before we get to Stefanos Island. This is gonna be a bumpy ride!"

Harris had just brought on the last of the nets, much of the food they would eat enroute was to be caught, and he wanted to make sure they were in good repair. To Johns comment, he nodded in agreement, knowing EJ was normally a reasonable sort, but Bo, a different matter altogether.

**Chapter XVII**

The first day out on the water was cold, a bit cloudy, and looking out over the horizon, Bo expected they would hit a storm within six hours. He was not concerned, the Fancy Face II was well equipped to handle it, he had been through a lot worse. He went below to give his assessment, while pouring another cup of coffee.

"Harris, you do make a mean cup of joe..they teach you that in hit mans school?"Bo was still in the mood to needle, but Harris was not taking his bait. Calmly, he poured out the dominoes from the box and just challenged Bo with his eyes.

"Up for a game?" so Bo sat down, across from EJ, next to John. "Nickel a point good enough for ya?" He began shuffling the tiles, and John got a score pad and pen.

"I've never played this before, how does it work?"EJ was looking, and as he saw each of the others take the seven tiles out, laying them upright so as to not be visible to the other players. Bo smiled, and gave EJ a quick lesson, thinking to himself, "dead money right there in chair number two!"

EJ was not an expert in dominoes, by any means. He was however blessed with a sharp eye, and a keen knack for numbers. After the first two hours, and the third page of the notebook he began tallying the scores.

"Looks like..John you owe me $2.45 cents, Harris, an even four bucks..Bo, wow! Twelve dollars! If this keeps up, I may just have the deed to this tub before we make the Bay of Biscay!

Scowling, Bo put the tiles back, and dug into his wallet. "Let's get one thing straight, Lord Wells..this is not a tub. The Fancy Face II is one of the finest vessels of its class in the world, she can do fifty knots into the wind without breaking a sweat. So don't be insulting her..this boat is our life for the next ten days!"

EJ immediately gave his apology. "I mean no disrespect, she is a beautiful vessel, and I am most honored to be serving aboard her."

"Damn straight you are, land lubber!" but Bo had a grin on his face as he said it. "Now, for all of you, we are heading into a storm now , we all have things to do. This storm may not be much, but then again.."he let his voice trail off, before he began assigning duties.

"Lord Wells, you and I will take care of the top deck, Harris, you and John take care of below decks." And he began with instructions that EJ noted, as he was the most familiar with the art of sailing. He would begin reefing the sails,, dropping the main and storing it below. He would be responsible for seeing that the engines were started when the time came. He would see the lash line secured, and any ring buoys as well in case the worst happened. As he looked out over at the ominous looking clouds gathering in a rolling and boiling cauldron of darkness, he came to respect the knowledge of Bo. They were going to need his expertise.

Bo next began barking orders to John and Harris. "Secure all the cupboards, pump out the bilges, check those hull fittings, top off the fuel tanks, check out the head, make sure the toilet is emptied out" this instruction was given at Harris who finally had enough.

"And just what will you be doing during all of this?"

"I will be making sure you all did everything I said, as I said, when I said. In addition, I will be making sure we stay on course, and don't get our asses capsized so you get a chance to live and get that son of yours back."

Everything was accomplished within an hour, and Bo went round to inspect how well it was done. Anything not to his satisfaction was pointed out, and the person responsible was made to redo the job. Mostly, it was fine, and Bo was beginning to have a bit of trust in his crew. John was a quick study, Harris was willing to do anything, and though it took a bit longer for him to finish due to unfamiliarity, he managed. And Lord Wells, this was a sailor, and he was earning Bo's grudging respect.

'I've set a course to take us as much to the outskirts of the storm as I could, but it seems to be gaining intensity, and covering more area. I want to tell you, most times the craft will take care of the crew, but it may not be so easy as I thought. The weather reports say it is going to hit right on top of us. Just do as I say, and we should ride it out just fine. Harris, jug up some hot coffee in those thermos bottles, we will be needing it. John, you stay down here, watch these coordinates for me, and if they go off this much, come up and let me know. EJ, you and I are gonna be top deck, so make sure you are well secured to the lash line, it's a long swim to England if you fall over!"

The rain came first, a light sprinkling that turned to a steady drizzle, then into sheets of water that coated their rain slicks into shiny wet slick pieces of vinyl. EJ walked along the side, making sure of each step as he went, for now the wind was starting up like a banshee howling, the waves alongside seeming to get taller as the boat moved slowly along. Engines were cut way back, and the boat was being allowed to just ride with the storm, not fighting it, but easing into it, letting the storm dictate the movement.

Bo looked about to see all was well, then he was going to suggest they both go below where it was at least warm and dry when he saw what he had forgot, and cursed his oversight. The roof dinghy was still upright, and needed to be face down so that no water weight would be gathered there from the rain and sea waves. He made his way to the ladder, and climbed, but his lash was too short. Forgetting his own order to EJ, he unshackled him self to reach the dinghy. The wave was strong, and hit him full face as it washed him directly over the side!

"Bo!!" EJ looked down as he saw Bo's bright yellow slicker bobbing in the sea, drifting out. EJ took the buoy ring, and tied the longest rope to himself he could find before diving in and swimming strongly towards Bo!

**Chapter XVIII**

Sullenly, the children sat huddled in one corner of the room, as security guards had entered unannounced. A man in a white jacket had taken Baby Liam, and placed him on a table, whipping out a stethoscope to listen to the baby's chest. He listened a bit, then merely nodded before saying all was well. When Sami had moved to pick the infant up again, she had been roughly pushed back into a chair, the business end of the weapon held by the guard pointed at her. Justin had rushed to her defense, but she had stayed him, assuring him she was alright.

Sean had looked about him after than, and saw the well concealed security cameras that had probably monitored every movement any of them had made since being confined here. The children could not be faulted with not knowing this, but as well as he and his sons understood the way Stefano had to live, he should have known.

The man using the electric wheel chair coming into the room seemed to have read his mind. "Slipping up in your old age my friend, time was you could have made an escape this way, we did it many times, right, old friend? Alas, times have changed, and my security people would never let me run an operation as slipshod as we were used to."

Sean glared at Stefano. He felt like a fool, and Stefano was enjoying making him feel that way. "I am not your old friend, and I will ask you not to refer to me that way again."

"I shall refer to you any way I please, I ask you to remember whose guest you are, and under whose sufferance you still live, Sean Brady!"

"You murdering son of a whore! Why have you done this? What of my wife, and all those others who were innocent in that Pub? You could have killed us all, what crazy plan for revenge was this about?" Sean was red faced and lunging, but was held back easily by two of the guards.

"You best just keep quiet, Mr. Brady, you do not look well at all..my Doctore says you have all the earmarks of a man about to have a heart attack..what is your present cholesterol level? Not good I would guess!"

Sensing that her grandfather was about to do something rash, Sami went to his side, and gently led him back to the childrens side of the room. "Please, Grandpa, calm down, I need you to be calm, so do the children..is your medicine in your pocket?" Sami reached in and got out one of the nitro pills Sean had been carrying in his pocket for the past couple of years, and slid one under his tongue.

Bart made to push the chair, but was waved away with an impatient hand. "Let me do some things for myself, after all, I am only up for an hour more..let me be!" and he used the controls on his chair to propel himself over to where the Doctore was examining the infant.

Kacie had an instinctive fear of the man, and she wanted him no where near little Liam, so she ran to place herself in between them. This made Stefano chuckle. "You are a brave little one, and so very intelligent. I have heard what has happened with you, and believe me, if it had gone on much longer, I would have intervened. No little one should have suffered that long when there was a way to stop it." His yellowed hand reached out to smooth her curls, but she backed away in fear.

"Yes, I am to be feared. I am glad to see you know that. It will be useful to you someday, I am sure. Now, go sit down, I need to see that this baby is well. When I say so, you may come and look him over!" his tone gave no room for disobedience, and in her fear, Kacie did retreat.

Justin welcomed Kacie back with comforting arms. He embraced her protectively which was noticed and approved of by Stefano. "You take good care of your sisters, and your mother too I see. That is good. All the DiMera men protect the women of the family. It is our duty!"

Ace did not know what was happening, but something was happening here he had felt before. He was going to be left in a new place again, and try as he might to steel himself for it, he could feel the unwelcome tears starting to burn within his eyes. Blinking, he fought against them, and at last he brought himself under control. For a three year old to do that was an amazing thing, and Stefano observed it with a sense of wonder.

"Theo, my actual grandson...how have you been my child? It has been very hard on me not being a part of your life, but Celeste thought it best. I have always seen to your welfare though, I want you to know that." Stefano addressed Theo, smiling, but understanding why Theo hung back and shot him dirty looks. His father had always hated the fact that Theo was part DiMera and had told him nothing good about that side of the family.

Finally, Stefano looked upon Sami, and gave her his warmest smile of all. "You, just look at you my dear! Married, a beautiful family, wonderful home, great career..do you ever just want to thank me for all of that? Heh heh, no, I thought not. I am responsible for it you know, I was the one who gave you the book idea that has brought you the most fame and fortune..I was the one who sent EJ to Salem to get involved with you..who knew he would make the mistake of actually falling in love..but then I understand, I loved your mother as much."

Sami could bear no more, "We had a deal! I kept my end of the bargain, so why did you do that to my Grandparents Pub? Why are people dead because of you? We should all be in Salem, right now! Instead you have us prisoner here..why..give me an answer please!"

"First of all, I did nothing. People are dead because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. As for Salem, yes, I think most of you can go on back to Salem. Sami, you even get to choose who goes back tomorrow! How about that?"

"What do you mean..I choose?"

"I have to make sure my legacy survives. EJ has been careless. As of now, the baby stays with me, and one more of the children. This is a heir and a spare situation. You, Samantha get the honor of choosing which one stays with me! Sort of a Sophie's choice..The baby, and one other. I suppose Theo is the logical choice, but again, sleep on it, I expect an answer in the morning."

Stefano then turned to Sean, "You should be glad we stopped you Sean, none of those boats in the harbor is sea worthy, you would have sunk to the bottom as soon as you left the bay."

With that, the wheelchair was turned and heading to the door. The doctore picked up the infant Liam and left. Sami was still dumbfounded but finally found her voice to say, "You can't make me do this...I won't."

Stefano only paused to say "You will." As the door closed behind him.

The tear he had been fighting rolled down Ace's cheek.

**Chapter XIX**

Sami tucked in Jessica next to Kacie. If she could not persuade Stefano to give up this evil plan, she knew she could not choose one of her daughters. Kacie was still going to need medical attention to act in case she ever rejected the bone marrow Justin had given her. Jessica, no, never. That would break EJ's heart, it was impossible to even think of leaving her..

Moving on to where Justin was lying with Theo, she bent to kiss him, then looked into a pair of brown eyes, heavily lashed, with that same endearing way of blinking that EJ had. She knew she could never leave him to be raised God knew how by a man who was so blinded by power, he forgot how to keep his humanity intact. Justin reached to hold onto her neck, and whispered "Mom, just let me stay. I will find a way to get loose, I promise!"

Theo was awake, and she knew what he was thinking. "I am a DiMera all the way..why not leave me? I am not even one of her kids. Yes, she will leave me, I know it, I see it in her eyes."

He did see that in her eyes, that is what she would probably have chosen, except her grandfather began to choke and gasp for breath again. She ran to him, and pulled out a nitro pill, placed it under his tongue, while giving him small sips of water. She knew Theo was older, and he would be able to help. Her decision then was made.

Ace was already blinking his eyes, trying to stay awake when she lay down next to him. His small body stiffened at her nearness. She ignored it, and put her arms about him anyway, pulling him against her warmth. He said nothing, just barely let himself lean into her, softening a bit, and deciding for this one night, he would pretend. She was his mother, she loved him as she did all the others. She was not going to leave him. This was a pretend..he was good at pretend. His eyes closed, and he had happy dreams.

Sami lay awake, holding him, finally, her own exhaustion overtaking her, with dreams of her own starting to invade her mind. Her fear of the future began to unfold within her subconscious.

...EJ was no longer with her, for he had not understood why she had left their son. The sacrifice she had made to save the others had sickened him, and he had hated her for it! He had left, and taken control of the other children, and she had been left to live a lonely existence, once again hated by all who knew her!

In her dreams an angry embittered man came home to taunt her with what he had grown up to be.

So, you are my Mother, I remember you. You left me behind so the others could live happily ever after! Thank you, for it was what Stefano wished for. I am the one he has always wanted to rule!

"I am the one Stefano has chosen to rule! And that means your precious Justin must now step aside! "

"What about Liam, what happened to him?"

"Mommy dearest...please..don't you realize there can be only one heir to the throne? Liam met with an unfortunate accident, most untimely!"

The dream continued, and Sami saw so many evil things in store for her son. Fighting to wakefulness, she was damp with sweat. Pulling a robe about her, she ran into the hallway trying to make it to the elevator doors, but the security detail was just outside her door, and she had no where to turn.

A buzzer went off in the guards phone, after a seconds conversation in Italian, she found herself being led roughly down the hall towards the elevator entrance. He pushed her into it, then the doors shut and she found herself going upwards, stopping after 3 flights, and the door opening up into a room that was for all intents and purposes a hospital facility. There, hooked up to the familiar sight of a Phoenix machine, lay Stefano, next to him, his sentinel, Bart.

"Come on in Little Missy, ole Bart is here, and nothing is happening to you. I swear, this has been a trial for you, I know, but believe you me, ole Steffie just wanted to make sure the family stays alive..so much badness in the world ya know.."

Ignoring him, she went to Stefanos side, "You bastard! Wake up, wake up now! I want to talk to you this instant!"

Bart reached to tune in the frequency needed to bring Stefano up, and in a matter of seconds Stefano was looking about in a mild state of confusion.

"You said to get you up if Sami was ready to talk Boss. And lookee here, just like you said, she is right here..yesiree..Boss, you know her like the backa ur hand, I don't know how you do it, but it is amazing Boss..just amaz.."Bart stopped when he caught the look on the face of Boss.

"Shut up, you buffoon! Bring her a chair! This may take awhile!" His order was instantly obeyed, and Bart took Sami's arm to sit her next to the bedside.

"You have made your choice, good girl, always best to just make a decision, then do not second guess yourself..instinct is a God given talent for most of us". He reached to pat her hand but she pulled away in disgust.

"Ace, I am giving you Ace.". Sami said, with a catch in her voice, but she was not giving in to tears to which Stefano smiled with admiration.

"Excellent choice, he is the one I would have said too! You and I both know he is the one who will survive the best!"

"There is only one thing you must do for me though. I remain with him, let the others go back to their father, they will be fine. But Ace will need me, so please, let me stay with him. I promise I will not try to escape..I just want to be with him, I want him to know his mother". Begging was not in her nature, but Sami was close to it now.

"Hmm..well, it was not what I was thinking you would do, but this may have advantages..yes..I think we can work something out..Welcome to the family Samantha!" and his laugh rang out in an tone that sent ominous chills down her spine!

**Chapter XX**

Bo felt the waves pulling him out, and he fought against it, but his strokes against the force were weakening with each second. The cold was hitting him, and his mind began to close down to shield him from the shock of what was happening. He could see the face of Hope, smiling at him in a distant place, and all he wanted was to be there with her. He was so close to her now, almost within touching distance, and his hand reached out to stroke her face. Then he was snatched away from her, and he was pulled farther and farther away, until he knew he would not be able to reach her, and he turned to fight the force stopping him.

The first ineffectual slap at his face had only annoyed EJ, but he held on to Bo, and began the arduous swim back to the boat. The second one made him angry, since it was hard enough swimming against these waves as high as a one story building, so he swung his fist directly into Bo's face, feeling a bit of satisfaction at the slight crunch sound it made, but even more relief as he felt him slump, making the task of swimming with him easier. He managed to get the buoy over Bo's head and shoulder, which made him more buoyant and easier to tow. It seemed like an eternity, but the reality was John was pulling them up over the side with the help of Harris within an couple of minutes. EJ was exhausted, and Harris carried him in a firemans hold down to the galley, with John following with Bo.

First, they stripped the wet clothing off of them, wrapping them both up in woolen blankets. Bo had shaken off the effect of the blow EJ had landed on him, but now his hand was reaching up to inspect the area that had taken the hit.

"You basthard" the voice came out in a slight lisp! "You busthed my fuking nothe!"

John came over to take a look ,"Yeah partner, that is broke alright!"

Bo was not normally vain, but this was different. He wanted to see, and he staggered against the ships motion to the head and the shaving mirror. His nose was now a shade of purple tinged with the blood that had spurt out. It had a definite tilt to the left up at the bridge, and the effect was most pirate like. He came out of the head, holding a wet cloth to his nose, glaring at EJ.

"I had to do it Bo, for Gods sake you were trying to swim away from me, and I had no intention of letting you drown, and less intention of drownng with you, now come on, it really doesn't look too bad..Harris, what do you think, can you do anything?'

To Harris, a victim of a broken nose several times over, Bo was being a baby. Hell, this little adjustment was nothing. He probed a moment, enjoying it as Bo winced, after all, Bo had been on his case from the moment he had set foot in Salem, much less what he had taken while serving as his crew! Placing his two thumbs firmly on each side of the nose bridge, he had given a whoosh sound, then pressed to the right side of Bo's nose, stopping once he heard the slight crackle he knew meant the cartiliage had realigned, which would straighten the nose out. It would mean his whole face would carry a bruise of several shades, but the nose would be right as rain within days.

Bo suppressed his yelp of pain, refusing to contribute to Harris's obvious delight in the whole situation.

John fought his own reaction, and he almost succeeded until EJ had to say something, "I really think you should have left it leaning left, Harris, his face seemed so much more in balance that way..what do you think John?"

"You read my mind partner!" and the laughing started, from all four of them.

"Ok, ok, thanks EJ, thanks Harris, and as for you John, thanks a lot for hauling us up..now get this clear..I am still the captain, and there aint gonna be any group hugs for us..are we clear on that?"

Subsiding, the storm gave way to more gentle waves, and Bo righted the course once again. Surprisingly, the storm had actually sped up their journey a bit. After filing the plans again with all coast guards in the area they continued. Bo estimated the would arrive in Southhampton Port in four days.

After that, they would get over the Bay of Biscay, around the cape, on to the Mediterranean and Stefanos island near La Palma. The small fishing boat they were going to transfer to would meet them in La Palma. Getting into Stefanos island harbor would not be easy, but in the guise of a fishermans craft, it just might work. If they were turned back, they planned an assault by going in underwater from further out. EJ was very familiar with the island, He had spent a great deal of his childhood on holiday there, and it was while there that Stefano had decided upon him to rule. Now it seemed that Stefano may have had a change of heart. To EJ that was not important anymore, his family was important, and if Stefano wanted to mess with that, EJ would kill him soon as look at him.

John lay awake, he did not look forward to what was coming. If Stefano wanted to fight, he would stand and do so, but more likely Stefano knew exactly what was coming, and one way or the other was prepared. He pictured Marlena in his mind, she had railed against him coming on this mission, even his references to her grandchildren had not kept her from begging him to let EJ handle it by himself. It had been hard not to listen to her, but he knew in the long run, she would never forgive herself if another bad thing came from the evil of Stefano DiMera, and he had been able to help stop it.

The dream Harris was having was causing him to toss and turn, but no one noticed as they were all in their own reveries. Harris was carrying a wrapped up bundle towards his wife, and she was running out to him, her own arms outstretched. As he got closer and closer to her, the bundle got lighter and lighter, until he reached her, and she unwrapped the blue blanket to find..nothing..Liam was not there, only the small wooly lamb that Sami had given him. It seemed to him a sign though, a sign from Sami that she was looking out for him, and with that thought, Harris passed into a more peaceful sleep.

His arms closed around the pillow he had brought with him, and EJ inhaled the scent Samantha had left there on it. Her shampoo, and the scent of the moisturizers used on her skin lingered there, making him breathe deeply. He pictured her, how it felt to caress her softness, and run his fingers through her hair, while he kissed the sweetness of the top of her head. He shook it off, he knew he had to. Distractions during the mission would not help get her or his children back. Instead of thinking of her, he began to remember every detail of what he knew about the island, and how best to gain entrance to the fortress that the house really was.

Only Bo slept undisturbed. His faith now was with the Fancy Face II, and he believed in her with all his heart. After all, he had named her for the finest woman he had ever known, and she had never let him down yet.

**Chapter XXI**

Stefano had listened to Samantha, and how she wanted for this all to happen for an hour, not agreeing to everything she wanted, but for the most part, he let her have her way.

"I want time with them alone, I have to explain what is happening, and I have to have a way to let them know I am alright from time to time..can that be arranged?"

"Time with them is allowed. The other..no! This world is a hard enough place to hide in my dear, for me to allow you contact with them is only an invitation for your loving husband to come and make trouble. He is going to be difficult enough to deal with as it is." His voice was not harsh, but it had a note of finality in it that made Sami decide on a different tack.

"Ok, then just make sure that I can see that they are well, and happy, can you do that for me?"

"Done!" Stefano smiled, as he realized what she thought would reassure her could possibly also torment her, but he would cross that bridge as he came to it. Once again, this was all a means to an end for him, and though he was happy to be able to have a semblance of a family near him during this trying period of his life, it was rather tiresome to have to set things up again he had thought were cemented for life.

For the most part EJ had done well, but this latest lapse was deadly serious. His approval rating from the last council meeting was lower than President Bush'es and in order to reassert control over them, much blood was going to be shed. Would EJ still be up to it? Or had family life and the rigors of trying to make a life and a business that would not be held up to a light of day and found wanting by the so called pillars of Salem have been his undoing? Getting back Samantha with the two other children would depend on him once again proving himself to Stefano.

"But my dear, do you remember what happened with your lovely mother while she was once a guest with me? She also wanted to have reassurance that all was well with many of you in Salem, and she saw John, John making love with Kate..did she tell you? So how would it make you feel to see EJ moving on? Another woman? Your sister perhaps? Would you be able to live with that?"

The dagger he pointed at her heart did leave a mark. "EJ would never be with Carrie, he may move on, but not with Carrie. You are sick to even suggest such a thing."The doubt rose up in her mind, but was quashed as quickly as she could while covering her reaction to it.

He read her quickly though, that was a DiMera trait. They always read a face, for weakness, any sign of vulnerability. She was good though, all her years of lying, and deceit had served her well. Not many could recover like Sami could. Her mother also had the same ability he remembered. She had been a woman who could deceive him, while most could not.

"Samantha, you never know what a man will do when his bed gets cold and lonely..and after all EJ is just a man. He has the same weaknesses of the flesh we all do, or at least that I used to..aah well, one must give up the things of youth sometime, mustn't we?'

"Boss, I told you, that new medicine might work for you!" Bart tried to be helpful, but was silenced by Stefanos look of disgust.

"Do not speak this way in front of the mother of my Grandchildren..and Sami, I think of all of the children as my grandchildren,,I want you to know they are all equals in my sight! No matter what Tony may have thought."

Samantha thought back to another time. When EJ had first brought her to this island. Stefano had tried to weaken her faith in EJ that time too. It had not worked then, and now after the years they had been together, all the wonderful times, the tragic times, and the day to day existence of a marriage and raising of children, she was not about to allow it to work this time either. However, it might suit her to let Stefano think he had weakened her by using this tactic. Thinking her defeated would make it easier for her to probe for his weaknesses also. Of course he had them, he had just mentioned one after all, her mother!

"It is late, can I please go back to the nursery, I should like to spend as much time with them as possible before they are gone."

"Of course, and you know what..I just wish any of my wives or mistresses had received half the maternal instinct you have been blessed with..it brings a tear to my eye..really it does my dear.." but his smile was one that did not convey a person who could cry over anything. He was one who had lost that ability decades ago, and Sami knew why.

Escorted back to the nursery, Sami began to think about all she must remember to say to her children before they would be taken from her. How she wished she had been able to give them a life free from any of this, but their father was who he was, and when it came down to it, she would not have changed anything about him. His business was not the same as when Stefano had been running things. EJ was a person who wanted good for the world, but had to work in an environment of evil that had been created by Stefano. Yes, he could have led the revolution immediately, which is what she advocated, but so much of the world was ran by entrenched business interests that found change to be a frightening prospect. .

EJ and his crusade for cures to Global Warming, and alternative renewable energy sources had made him enemies in the world who had influence with the council. His pursuit of justice in the African countries plagued by genocide and scourged by Aids had been seen as a distraction from the work of increasing the empire.

Now she was seeing what EJ's own impatience had created. Stefano was now fearing something he felt he had lost control of. Sami was beginning to believe Stefano had not meant to harm them, for if he did, he would have already done so. In his own strange way, he felt he was protecting them, or at least making sure the legacy would continue. That he was willing for most of them to return to their lives in Salem did reveal something about his intentions.

The children did not awaken as she came back into the room, but Sean did. She went to him to see if he was needing anymore of his medicine. He seemed tired, and his skin had a tone she did not like at all.

"Sami, me girl, I want you to ask Stefano to let me stay here with Theo..I promise you I will take good care of him..and he is the oldest. You know that Abe will come and take care of him..Roman will help..Sami..let me stay".

"Oh Granpa, you don't remember, Dad is gone..so no..you have to go with the kids to watch out for them, I am staying behind, with Ace..he will need me, and the others will have their Daddy to take care of them, he will take care of them always! Don't worry, when the time is right, he will be coming for me and Ace...he has never let me down yet, he never will. I'm gonna be fine and so are you..get some rest now!: she leaned to kiss his beloved and wrinkled forehead. He seemed so very old and frail, this man who had always seemed a pillar of strength to her. As he drifted off to sleep, he murmured the name "Caroline.: then a few seconds later, he was murmuring "Eleni" the name that had been the start of all this pain.

**Chapter XXII**

John had taken over the top deck watch for awhile, when EJ came up the steps to sit by him as he gazed up at the stars. They had a companionable silence for a bit when John finally brought up the subject of Marlena.

"You know she is so very sorry and guilty for what she did, there is just something between her and Sami that cannot be breached somehow. I hope you know how much she suffered when she thought Sami and the kids had perished."

"Yes, I suppose so. She did have a lot to be guilty about", EJ was still not in a forgiving mood about his mother in law, so much had happened, and now was not the time for him to allow her to occupy space in his head rent free.

"Marlena spent a lot of time away from her kids, except for Belle, and most of it was not her fault, it was this insane vendetta Stefano had, and his penchant for making the Brady family pay for what their father did".John continued to make the case for his wife.

"That score was settled..Samantha paid the price.All your wife had to do was decide that Samantha was worthy of her love, and she has never been able to do that unconditionally. If she had, you might have seen a different side of her. The simple fact is, Belle comes first, then Carrie, then Eric and Samantha trailing along. I understand, she was gone during the time a mother normally bonds with her children, and it must have been hard dealing with a headstrong teenager who was bound an determined to reunite her own parents. I went through a lot of that with Will..before.."EJ became quiet as he remembered the boy who had left such a void in Samantha's life.

"I tried with Sami, I honestly did. She just held on to her bitterness for so long, it almost consumed her until you came into her life. I can despise you for working in the DiMera organization, but I know you changed her"

"You are so wrong about that John, I never changed her at all. Samantha is just as capable of being devious as she always was. You should ask Carrie about that. When she wants something she still will claw her way through until she gets it. I love that about her. She was always just this person that I love, but I adored the good and the bad in her. It fascinated me, excited me, and challenged me.

She is not her mother, when she is hurt, she reacts, she does not analyze it. That is how she loves, she gives in to it, and where ever it takes her she floats along in the same current. It is just a lot of the time, she seemed to be swimming upstream. Austin would have never made her happy, that was always obvious to me. Lucas, well, he might have had the slightest chance if he had ever decided to accept who and what she was, and believe in her. Then again, he would have had Kate to overcome. He could never do that, so he lost, I won. You know Samantha was genuinely happy that he seemed to have finally found what he needed. She is going to be sad when she hears he is gone.

Whatever the reason was that Marlena chose you, the same dynamic was in Samantha..she felt it, and she gave in to it..for that I am forever grateful" at that, EJ went silent, and accepted the flask of whiskey John handed over to him to ward off the chill.

"Damn, that is horrible, what is that stuff?"

"I believe it came out of a bottle called "Generic Whiskey" in Bo's liquor cabinet"

"Here, give it to me", and EJ poured it over the side to the sea. "I apologize to you, denizens of the deep, but I must refill this with something that won't rot our insides!"

EJ went down, and opened his valise, getting out a small bottle of Crown Royal, and refilling the flask, then going back up to John and offering him something that John sipped, then prounounced "Smooth!"

The time had come for them to get around to other business, as EJ did not seem inclined to unveil himself any further, and John felt the same.

"Why did Stefano take them from you EJ? I think it is time you lay your cards all out on the table".

"I let him down."

'Ok, let me drag it out of you then..How did you let him down? When did you let him down? Why did you let him down?'

Taking a long swig from the flask, EJ first gave the wheel a slight adjustment, as he felt the wind picking up just slightly.

"I did not protect what he holds most dear, the family legacy, I let someone get to them, I let my guard down. As to when, it started when I tried to end run the council. I knew they wanted me to kill off Samantha to prove my loyalty to the code. I was going to trick them, they figured it out, and sucker punched me. I should have seen it coming and prevented it. Stephano saw it, that is why he has them all now. He always was smarter than me. The why of it, that is a long question, but it is because I wanted a different life for my kids."

I have everything I could want, but I want also a world that provides a future for my children, and everyone elses too. I invested a lot of the council profits in things they saw no payoff in. They were right about there being no immediate payoff, the payoff would come with a different world. Sounds rather idealistic of me, especially knowing what you know about the DiMera World, doesn't it?"

"Well, here's to ideas partner", and John lifted the flask in toast.

**Chapter XXIII**

Sami went round to each of the sleeping children. Gently shaking each one awake, she took them to the table in the corner of the room. Only Ace was left to sleep, he did not need to hear this, her goodbye to the others. Theo sat, and sipped at the hot chocolate the duennas had brought in for them. Justin stood by her side, he was shivering, not in cold but in a fear that was gripping him. Jessica was still rubbing the sleep from her eyes, making Sami smile, she had always been like her, reluctant to leave a warm bed for any reason. She pulled Kacie up onto her lap, and the child turned her head into her mothers warm bosom, putting her small arms around her to snuggle into the warmth she offered.

Sean came over, and accepted the cup of coffee the duennas offered. Sami had told him he would be leaving with the kids this morning, and he had accepted what she had insisted on.

"I don't know why you don't just go, and leave me here Sami, I can take care of Acie boy, he's a fine 'un.." but the voice trying to sound so brave also sounded weak, as though he had aged years within the weeks since the explosion at the pub.

"You have to get back to Grandma, you know she is worried sick about you!"

At that, Sean looked out over the bay, he had been dreaming ever since they got here to this accursed island. Just as he had long ago let Eleni down, he knew now in his heart he had also failed Caroline. He was feeling her presence, but not in a here and now sort of way. He did not voice his knowledge to Sami, she had enough to burden herself with now, but he knew he would not be seeing Caroline again, at least not in this world.

When Justin saw that Sami had left Ace sleeping, the truth of what was happening hit him. "Mom, no, you cannot leave him here! Let me stay, let me stay! I'm the oldest!"

"I know you are baby, and that is why you must go with Papa Sean, you have to help him, you and Theo, watch over your sisters for me, and Ace and I will be along soon..I promise..I promise you..I won't be gone long, and when I come home, Ace will be with me," she lied as well as she ever had to them, proud that her skill at it once again came in handy.

"Mommy..you must come with us..Daddy will be sad if you don't come" Kacie was doing her best to persuade her mother to abandon this idea as well.

Jessica, though, with her own little maternal instincts as strong as her mothers understood. She looked over at her younger brother, his curly blonde head so like her own at that age, and knew there would be no way to make Mom leave him behind by himself..and there was Liam to consider too. Jessica reached up to rub the still reddened and bumpy area of her mothers cheek and could never remember seeing her mother so beautiful.

"Daddy is going to come and get all of you, and Uncle Harris. They will!" Jessica said it fiercely, knowing in her heart it was true, and there would never be any doubt!

'I know baby, I know." Placing her hand around her oldest daughter's neck, Sami pulled her into an embrace, and whispered to her, "take the envelope from my robe pocket, make sure your daddy gets it..promise me that Jess".

Jessica looked to make sure she was not observed, and took the envelope, stuffing it down her pajama bottoms.

When all were ready, Sami gathered them up, and together they walked down to the boat docks. Ace was left, still asleep. Sami smiled down at him, for in his sleep he reverted to placing his thumb into his mouth, not sucking, just hanging on to it for security. Rearranging the covers he had kicked off back over him, she left him with the one duenna while she walked down with the others to say goodbye.

Bart was there, along with a few of the security detail. A small craft, designed for fishing along the coastal waters was moored, and the engine was running smoothly. It was painted a cheerful yellow and white, with the name on the side being the Eleni. Sean saw, and looked at Bart with a sorrowful look in his eyes. Bart shrugged, and tossed Sean the rope to lower the gang plank down with. Sean looked at the balcony overlooking the bay, seeing his families nemesis and his one time friend sitting in his wheelchair looking down. He lifted his arm weakly in a salute of farewell.

"You just need to follow these charts, after two hours out, you will have radio available, but it is a dead reckoning over to La Palma. Once there, someone will be there to pick you up, that is what the Boss said to tell ya..good luck, and God Speed. I promise ya, we will take good care of the little missy and the young ones..I love that little guy Ace, practically raised him from a baby you know..him and I like peas and carrots!"

"Please shut up, the thought of leaving my grandchildren with you sickens me to death!"

"Well now you mention it, you don't look too good Sean..you got your medicine handy?"

"Just shut up, and help me get these kids on board!" red faced, at the exertion of just lowering the gang plank down, Sean was breathing heavily.

It was another fifteen minutes before all was readied, and Bart announced they all had to push off as the tide was receding quickly. Sami pushed Justin on, as he was still trying to convince her to let him stay.

"No! go, you and Theo need to help Grandpa Sean, he will need you..Daddy is going to come for me! Don't worry, but go now, I have to go back to Ace and Liam..please, don't make this any harder honey..I love you, when you see Daddy tell him I love him, and cannot wait to see him..he is going to be so happy to see you safe!"

Ace had rolled over, and saw that the mom was gone from his bed. Then he saw that all the others were gone too. It was no surprise, but he still ran to the window, looking down upon the bay, seeing the little yellow boat just clearing the rocks that marked the beginning of the quay. His tears rolled down his cheeks, but he gave no sound, as this was what he had expected. Then he heard the door open behind him, turning he saw Mom enter the room, her arms outstretched to him, as she was also crying, crying for him, for her, for her children that were now sailing away from them, and for the baby upstairs who was going to be needing her as well.

**Chapter XXIV**

It had been a long voyage crossing the Atlantic, and by the time they sailed into Southhampton Port, cleared customs and filed the papers required by the harbor master, the four sailors were ready for a night in a room, where they did not have to listen to each others sleep noises. EJ and John had usually kept the night shift, but the past three nights had been so smooth on the Atlantic, they had taken to sleeping on top deck in hammocks since the cacophony of sounds given off by Bo and Harris were bound to wake the dead. A night in a soft hotel bed, with running hot water sounded like heaven, as well as having a dinner that did not have to be cleaned and gutted before they ate it.

"Do you think we got into England without Stefano catching on?" John asked, after cutting into the steak he had been thinking about all day.

"If we got away with it, it is only because we sailed over..Stefano is not in the position he is in without being aware of all possibilities. He is bound to have been watching all the airlines, but I would say if we make it to La Palma without being pirated, we stand a good chance of surprising him."EJ waited for the wine to be poured by the sommelier before swirling it about, sniffing, then sipping a bit before gesturing for the man to fill his glass.

"Lord Wells, I gotta give it to ya, you seem to know your way around the best places! But since this is our night in port, don't you know any places where normal guys go hang out?"

"What do you have in mind? We do have to be ready to sail at 5 a.m. sharp..this is not a guys night out if you please." EJ was curt, while politely telling Bo to remember what they were here for.

"I get your point, but we are going to be another four days at sea now, and I might do us all some good to let our hair down a bit, if nothing else to get us relaxed for what is coming up!"

"Up the street, I recommend the Smugglers Pub. I used to go there when I came to visit Auto Union, they built a couple of my cars. It's close, we can walk.".EJ took the check, signed his card, and stood up to leave.

The Smugglers was a popular pub with the military crowd. Sailors on shore leave and wanting a time to themselves also attracted a certain class of young ladies. As soon as the four walked in they found themselves the center of some unwanted attention, both from the "working girls" and the sailors who soon lost the interest of the ladies.

"aye, andsome, I 'aven't seen the likes of anyone like you in here in awhile..care to buy a gal a drink?.."it was a young girl, no more than twenty who had decided that John was her type as she said, "I really go for the matoor gentlemens!" Her blouse was low cut, and the skirt she almost had on was a very tight denim. It was obvious all she wore beneath it was talcum powder.

"Nice place you brought us to EJ" was all John said, as he politely explained to the little red head that he was here with his own date, then he reached across to take Bo by the hand.

"Oye, that's 'ow it is eh? Damn shame,..I guess you all are double dating?" to assure her that was the case, Harris put his hand upon EJ's knee, giving him a loving smile.

When she left, EJ hissed, "move it, or lose it!" while Bo pulled his hand out from the grip of John.

Meanwhile the young lady had moved back over to the still ego crushed group of sailors. When EJ saw her speaking to them, and heard their laughter as she finished, he told the others.."this may not be the safest place to hang about, might want to finish these beers and find another pub."

Bo looked at Harris, in a challenge. "You think those seven are a even match for us?"

"Nope, they need a couple more is what I'm thinking."Harris was sipping slower, he wanted his beer to last. The past days on the boat, with no way of working out his inner aggressions had him wound up tighter than a coilspring. Bo was feeling the same way.

John looked at EJ, a pleading look on his face, but knowing he was stuck here and was bound to help his mates out, and when the seven came to stand around where they were sitting, he unconsciously began to clench and unclench his fist.

The stockiest of the seven was the first to speak.""'ow did you four manage to find your way to this eeestablishament"he dragged out the words, also making an attempt to sound sing song.

Then two of the others made a swish motion with their hands, knocking off three of the pints the four had been enjoying. This was what caused Harris to lose patience. All he had wanted was to sit and enjoy his beer, now he was going to enhance the experience as he stood and took the two by their ears, quickly knocking their heads together. Disappointed, he saw that had done the trick, as they slumped down, and he gently sat them in a nearby booth, propped against each other.

Now the odds were five to four, so EJ picked up Mr. Stocky, lifted him above his head, and twirled him until the man was begging to be put down. EJ obliged, and the man took the five foot drop flat on his back, but was well enough to climb out of harms way. EJ gave a grin of triumph, but let him go on his way.

With the evening up of things, the sailors decided they just wanted to have a peaceful drink themselves. "Hold up there fellows? You need to make a little restitution here, I think you owe us the pints your mates spilled over, and one for an apology for disturbing us.." John was figuring it out on his PDA, and handed over the total he wanted.

"Good, I think fifteen pounds is about right..night fellas".

**Chapter XXV**

They had all leaned out over the railing to keep their mother in sight for as long as they could, finally giving up when she became a small speck heading back up to the house. None of them gave in to tears, and Sean was so proud of them for that. Asking Theo to come forward to the wheel, he gave him a heading, and told him to just keep it in a straight line, and within an hour they should see the outline of Mallorca, and there would be La Palma where it was promised someone would be meeting them to help them contact EJ Wells.

Sean did not want to worry anyone, least of all the children, but he was growing weak, and the pains that had plagued him down his chest and arm were growing stronger. He knew it was a heart attack, he just hoped to keep the symptoms at bay long enough to get the children across the expanse of sea he needed to put between himself and Stefanos Island. He slumped heavily down on an area of railing, leaning on it so as not to give his condition up to the children. From here, he could rest, while still giving instruction to Theo.

The duennas had packed up a basket of food and drink for the group, and Jessica and Kacie busied themselves dividing it up, each of the plates getting a bit of the cheese, bread and fruit. Sean waved them off though, and Justin came to sit by him, alarmed at the funny bluish color that was forming around his Pops lips.

"Popa, do you have your medicine like Mom said?" at those words, Sean looked at his grandson, clutched at his chest and pitched forward to the deck!

"Popa!" Jessica ran to Justins side kneeling next to the old man. Theo left the wheel, and the dead reckoning that Sean had set it too spun around and the boat was off course. He tried so hard to remember what the training films his dad had brought home from the police academy said to do, and Theo began pressing down upon the chest, while breathing in, but he could not recall what the rhythm was supposed to be, as he did his best. Sean opened his eyes for the briefest of moments, ashamed that once again he had failed in his duty. He knew as long as Theo held the wheel to the line he had set it to, they should be fine, but if not, they might miss the lanes and lose themselves in this inland giant sea.

He had only two more seconds, and he fixed his gaze on the face of his beloved Caroline, and behind her, the face of another who had once loved him, and who also gave him a look of forgiveness..Eleni..

Kacie was coming to see what had happened, and she knew right away. In her time within the hospital, she had seen people die. This is how they looked. Death was always unwelcome, but it was accepted. Her brother and sister were now giving in to their fears, and she went to them, her little arms encircling each waist, wanting to give them what ever comfort she could. Even if it was just an offering of the banana she had saved for herself.

Theo all of a sudden remembered the wheel, and ran back to steer it on the same course.

He did not realize it, but they were already off the course set by Sean and Bart by several miles. Unless it was soon corrected, they would be missing the port by miles, and the fuel would not last much longer than La Palma. Without Sean, they also did not know how to operate the radio. None of these practical things were uppermost in their minds now, they were in shock with the witnessing of their great grandfathers death. With the shock came the realization that they were alone on a vast sea, with no food, and very little water. Justin and Jessica struggled to move Sean out of the sun to a shady area on the boat, but it proved to be impossible for them, and finding a piece of canvas, they had covered him with it, adding a rolled up ball of netting as a pillow for his head.

The sorrow from these losses was overwhelming now to all of them. Theo kept his grip on the wheel, then set the lock. He could only hope they found their way soon. Knowing it was his responsibility as the oldest, he called all of them over to stand over the body. "I think we need to say a prayer now, I know the Lords Prayer so I will say it , and if any of you have anything you want to say, go ahead." Theo began to recite the words given so long ago as a guide. When he finished he looked out over the sea, almost as a sign that God was listening and watching out for them, a pod of dolphins appeared at the helm of the boat! They stayed right beside the boat, at times even coming close enough to nudge it a bit to the right, which was acting as a way to get the little boat out of the area of the sea less traveled, and more into the active shipping lanes.

Kacie was fascinated, and she stared and pointed at the fishies! Her big brother explained to her that no, these were not fish, but mammals, just like Inky at home. Theo then sat down to tell them of many dolphin legends he had heard of where dolphins had rescued people at sea!

In the distance, Bo was looking out over the waters with his binoculars when he spied the boat, and for some reason felt it was odd to see that type of coastal hugging craft out in the open sea like this. He opened up several frequencies to try and hail the vessel, but there had been no answer. Also troubling was the fact that it was nearing sunset, and the boat had not yet turned on its running lights which was dangerous due to the fact it could be rammed out here by larger freight craft.

EJ came up top to see why Bo seemed to have changed course, and Bo pointed the craft out to him.

"We better see if they are alright, something does not seem right"

EJ took the binoculars and honed in on the craft, from where they were now, he could make out the name of the boat...his heart froze as he read ,"Eleni"!


	2. Chapter 2

**Being Measured for the Crown**

Prologue: Lives have been lost, families destroyed, and a city is devastated by what has been done at the Brady Pub. EJ Wells, Harris McMurty, and Lexie Carver now have more reasons than ever to work together to make sure the DiMera legacy does not die.

**Chapter I**

The cry came to her in the dream. It was an infant, angry with hunger, cold or wet, but for whatever reason, there was a high level of distress being signaled by the sound. It awakened in her a response, triggered by some level of the human programming to care for babies. She fought to get to the sound in her dream, but the effort was so tiring, her limbs felt as though they were weighted down, and her head was too heavy to lift from the pillow.

Her head moved from side to side on the pillow, and she managed to open eyelids for a moment, and was rewarded by the sound being distinctly louder, which was helping her to become a bit more alert and more able to concentrate on the cry. Her vision was only of a white light, and she put her hands up to her eyes, and felt that they were covered in a gauze film, which she could tell was some type of bandage. She struggled to remember, but she could not. The dryness of her mouth and lips made speaking impossible, but she made an effort anyway.."EJ..." her whisper was weak, but she was calling for her husband, knowing he should be here by her side, he would want to see her, to know she was alright.

"She is waking up..good, good, see if you can get her to eat a little soup. She will need something on her stomach soon or she will get nauseated" a female voice was speaking, and Sami was relieved.

The doctor was a woman, this must be a hospital she was in. Her lungs still burned from the smoke, there had been so much smoke. It had seemed like she was floating out of the smoke, now she knew she had been carried. Fighting to recall things that shock had forced her to forget was tiring her out again. There was so much she did not remember. When the infants cry came again, she was startled, and she struggled to sit up, the children! Now she remembered! She had to find them, it was so dark, and she was trying to find them..that was what she had forgotten!

"Lie back down now, little Missy, it's alright, I won't let anyone hurt you, " the voice was familiar, and his touch was firm and insistent as he pushed her back down. The side rails on the bed had restraints which were again put on her arms to keep her from sitting up, and she was too weak to struggle much. The needle was put into her arm, not to put her to sleep, just to make her easier to manage. Bart knew it was important to make her eat something. She had to be made presentable before the children could see her. If she was like this, they would be more frightened than they already were.

On the second level of the building, a nursery area for the children had been set up. It was well equipped with television, toys and video games. The nursemaids who had been assigned to the children were pleasant women, who had been instructed to treat all the children kindly.

Theo was sitting on the bed with the other four children grouped around him. He was reading to them, which had been a nightly ritual for them since they had arrived at this place. The first few nights, he had done it to keep the others from crying so much, and now he did it to keep himself from crying with them. They all wanted their mother and father. He wanted his too.

Jessica had nightmares from the very first night, Justin had taken to crawling into bed with her to soothe her .Kacie was holding up well as her struggles as a cancer patient had taken much of the fear in her little soul away and she maintained a quiet stoicism. Ace was different, again, this was another case of abandonment to him, and he was dealing with it as he had all the other times. He was a holy terror, and the only child the nursemaids warily watched, before bringing him meals, or helping him dress. They both had the bruises on their shins that had earned their caution.

The soup was warm, with a savory taste that felt pleasant going down her throat. It was also helping her think, as the nourishment in her stomach made memories come sharper. She found her voice, and grasped at the hand that was feeding her the soup. The restraints kept her from getting to the hand, and straining only tired her, so she let her hands fall again at her side.

"Where is my husband..my children..tell me please..what happened?" Questions came fast now, there was much she needed to be told.

"My grandmother, Grandpa Sean..there was an explosion..where are they? Are they alright?"

"Shh...you must not get excited, don't worry, everyone is fine, you are fine..eat the soup, it will make you strong, and you will be able to see your children soon, Eat the soup now..You need to be strong". The voice carried with it an accent Sami could not recognize. It soothed her, but she would not be silent.

"Why are my eyes covered, can I take it off?" she pointed up at the gauze film again.

"In a few days, yes, your eyes were injured by the...the flash..but in a few days all will b well, the doctor has said..please, eat more soup..it is good for you." And the voice soothed as it spooned the soup into Samis mouth.

Sean Brady paced the cell he was in. The blow that had knocked him out had left a goose egg sized lump on the back of his head, and he rubbed it, welcoming the discomfort, as it kept him awake. He began to yell at the top of his lungs, then picked up the mattress from the narrow cot he had been lying on. He picked up the small cot and began throwing it against the cell bars, trying to make as much noise as he could! He wanted to see a human face..he wanted to know where his wife was! Who is doing this to him?. He could imagine only one answer, but that was an impossibility, as Stefano DiMera was dead! .

**Chapter II**

When the reports began coming over the television about the devastation at the Brady Pub, Kate had stood transfixed. Phillip had punched in a number on his phone, forgetting all about the Council vote, and had cursed when his call failed to be answered. He too found himself staring at the scene unfolding on the screen. Only Victor still seemed unfazed. He called for Nico to bring the car around. Telling Kate to stay put, Phillip and Victor drove down to the waterfront area. The police had cordoned it off to almost a mile perimeter, so they parked and began trekking to as close to the Pub as they were allowed.

As Victor saw the damage done, and the cost in human lives and suffering, he glared at Phillip in anger. "The Council said it would be a clean job..is this what they call clean? Hell, I could have hired gang members who would have acted more professionally!"

Bo Brady and Shawn had made their way down to the area, many of the officers were still friends with Bo, and they had not stopped him as he bulled his way in, he was not going to be stopped as he tried to find his parents. One of his former partners called out to him "Bo..Oh God, Bo I am so sorry!"

"Duke, what do you know? Have you seen Mom or Pop? Do you know if they got out ok?"

"Bo..over there, God, Bo, I am so sorry" Bo looked where Duke had pointed, on the street was a row of bodies, covered in white sheets. There had been so many injured, that the dead were just laid out to await transport to the morgue. The living had to be attended to first.

Bo clutched onto Shawn, and they made their way over to where the bodies had been laid out and covered. Bo saw the slight figure, and a cry of agony escaped his lips. He ran then, covering the distance in a second as he fell to his knees next to his mothers body. He pulled the sheet back, and saw her beloved face, still as kindly looking as when she had been alive..and she had been alive only minutes ago. Bo screamed then, screaming his rage at who could have done something like this to a woman who would have helped anyone..who never hurt anyone..who was so full of love and kindness, now gone for what reason on gods earth?...

Victor saw Bo kneeling, holding the sheet covered body to his chest, and his own heart began beating harder with the knowledge that he had also lost his soul that night. His steps to reach Bo were quick, but he was finding it difficult. For some reason, he could feel his breath becoming short, and his legs so heavy he had to struggle to keep them moving. Phillip saw his father stumble, then collapse, falling to the pavement before he could reach Caroline.

"Pop!" Phillip ran to reach his father, trying to find the aspirin that Victor had been told to always keep handy. Victors eyes were wide open as he saw death approaching. He knew he had it coming, had known it for so long, but it was still a surprise. The only wish he had as he gave in to it was to turn his head towards where Caroline lay, which he did, then his eyes closed for the last time.

His cries for help had gone unnoticed, there were so many injured, still so many being led to the ambulances, one old man dead of a heart attack was not of paramount importance. Finally someone had stopped.

"Carrie..I think he's dead..oh God, what have we done?" Philip cried up to Carrie who had seen him, and ran over to check if he was alright. The man with her had stripped off his coat and knelt down to Victor, opening his shirt and beginning CPR, alternating the pumping action of his hands with mouth to mouth breathing. His efforts were strenuous, but after a minute, he announced, "he has a pulse, get someone over here quickly, he needs to get to a hospital now!"

Phillip managed then to get one of the paramedics to come and assess his father. The medic was disgusted, "We have a lot of trauma going on here, and you lookie loos coming down here to stick your noses where they don't belong is a shame! This old coot would have been fine if he had just stayed home where he belonged!"

As the last words left his mouth, the medic found himself in a death grip by Philip. "This is my father, Victor Kirakis..a very important man in this town..you want to keep your job and your breath..get him on an ambulance NOW!"

The threat in Phillip's voice resulted in a immediate attitude adjustment on the part of the medic who signaled for the next ambulance and had Victor placed on it. Phillip whispered in the ear of his father, "I will be there as soon as I can Pop, now I need to find Lucas and Austin."

"Phillip..my God, were Austin and Lucas still in the pub when this happened? Let us help you find them" and Carrie would have done so, except she then saw Bo and Shawn and the figure of her Grandmother being rocked in Bo's arms. Her own cry of devastation made Lloyd hug her to him, but she struggled away to get to her grandmothers side.

Running, Carrie stumbled in her haste over one of the sheet covered corpses, and as Lloyd caught up to her, and helped her to her feet, she looked down in horror as the face she had uncovered was one she had known so well for so long! Austin! He was not peaceful looking in death, and Carrie reached one hand down to gently move a lock of his hair from his eyes. Then she began to cry with grief, a cry so deep and hurtful, it made Lloyd stand back, afraid to interfere, afraid not to.

Belle had called over to her parents house, asking them if they had the televison on. It was not often they did, and tonight was no exception, but when she told them what was going on they had gone immediately to the balcony to see what was visible. Both had grabbed their coats, and Marlena pulled out her medical bag. She knew whatever expertise she could offer would be needed. The injured would overwhelm the para medic teams, and any assistance would be welcomed.

John had seen EJ first, and as he urged Marlena to give medical assistance, he made his way over to where EJ sat, with Harris, both of them holding cups of coffee that never reached their lips. Chandler Loring was with a news crew, getting reports out, but John was relieved to hear, instead of putting her microphone in front of suffering people, she was instead concentrating on giving people information about how to check on loved ones, and advising people not to come down to the area, they would only get in the way of the emergency personnel

"EJ, has anyone seen the Bradys?" and they gave him the news of Carolines death. John saw that EJ was deep within himself, barely nodding towards where the bodies were.

Then John knew why. "EJ, Sami, was she in there? Where is she?"

Harris answered, for he knew EJ was unable to say the words, he had not spoken at all for the last hour.

"Sami and the family were in there, still in there..and so was Pop Brady..we have not found any of them with the ones who managed to get out of the Pub..the firemen say we will know if they are in there when they can enter the building, or what is left of it..that won't be until morning at best".

John then saw the burned out remains of the van that Sami always used to move her family about in. The car seats were burned out, and a small stuffed toy lay on the pavement, unharmed. John went to pick it up and saw it was little 'Anton's teddy bear. John held it to his chest, remembering the spirited little boy who had clung to that bear, a fierce child who would not give in to lifes bumps in his road.

**Chapter III**

Matt had turned the corner leading to the pub when the blast occurred. The force of the first explosion had made his car leave the road, hitting against a mail box. His past experience in the Navy Seals had left him no doubt as to what had occurred. This had all the earmarks of a nitrate car bomb, like the one used in Oklahoma City, only on a smaller scale. At first he did not see that it was a direct hit on the pub, then he had seen the cab that had rolled onto its side from the force of the blast. Making her way out of one of the cab windows was Chelsea, her face bloodied, a look of fright and confusion on her face.

Matt ran to help her, and the cab driver also. He took one look at her, and was relieved to see she did not appear seriously hurt, just stunned. The cut on her forehead was still bleeding, and he took his handkerchief to hold against it.

"God Matt, what happened?"she leaned into his strength, not comprehending what was going on. Then she looked toward the pub and screamed! Her great grandparents, her uncles, and Sami and all the kids had been inside when she had left only minutes before.

"Matt, what if they are still in there?"but his face told her the story, if they were in there, there was no hope, no hope at all.

Marlena was taking the blood pressure, and other vitals of four victims at once who were lying on the pavement, not even able to cover them as there were no longer any blankets available. She took off her own coat to cover the most seriously injured man, but when she knelt to tuck it in, she heard the rattle in his chest that meant he no longer needed it. John was next to her by the time she had taken it on to the next woman in the line. He carried the teddy bear she had seen him tuck Anton in with, and she looked at him with an unbelieving look.

"Where is Sami? Where did you get that?" John's head dropped to his chest at the question, and he did not know how to tell her of everything that was lost on this night. Standing, she looked past him to where EJ and Harris sat, still staring at the smoking ruins of the pub. Over on the grassy area, she saw Bo carrying the limp figure of Caroline Brady towards her. Chelsea and Matt also were making their way into the area, both of them white with the shock of all they were seeing. It was too much to take in, and each time another victim looked up at them, they would pause, seeing if there was anything they could do to help, most times the victim just wanted to know if they had seen or heard of one of their loved ones..showing pictures if they had one. Chelsea had tears raining down her face as she had to tell each one.."No, I am so sorry", while Matt tried to keep her moving in the direction of EJ and Harris.

Chandler Loring put down her microphone, and got out her phone to call home. When the message machine picked up for the third time, she got worried. Nanny should have woke up with that ring, or else how would she ever hear Liam when he cried? The broadcast had to continue, so she put her phone away, deciding she would find Harris and have him make the next call.

Carrie and Lloyd were doing all they could to help as well, when Carrie heard someone weakly call out her name. Her attention was caught by the green and yellow jacket of his favorite football team, and she saw Lucas being carried on a stretcher to one of the waiting ambulances. His face was covered in an oxygen mask, and he was covered from the waist down, both arms infused with i.v. tubes. Horrified, Carrie looked away, and Lloyd shielded her from the sight, Lucas was alive, but he had no legs!. His hand reached out to Carrie..he needed to know "Austin..is Austin alright..please call Mom, tell her I am fine, but find out about Austin.

"Damnit,!" the para medic was reading the alert bracelet on Lucas's arm. "This guys HIV, double glove it now people!" and Lucas was taken onboard the ambulance.

When her cell phone rang, Kate picked up immediately, not bothering to check, but assuming it was Phillip or Victor.

Her former daughter in-law twice over was sobbing as she delivered the news to Kate, who only began screaming at her to quit lying, "Damn You to Hell, quit lying! Put Phillip on the phone, where is Phillip?" and Kate was still screaming that when Nico came in and took the phone from her to speak with Carrie.

His accent was thick, but he was calm as he asked Carrie if she knew where Phillip and Victor were, and again, she was the bearer of the bad news. Thanking her, he hung up the phone, and took the glass of bourbon out of Kate's hands.

"We have to get to hospital, Mr. Kirakis is there, and your son Lucas also, come, we must go quickly!"

"And Austin?" Kate demanded he give her a different answer from what Carrie had said.

"He is dead, that is what Carrie has said, so come, we find out for ourselves, but Mr. Kirakis is alive, Lucas is alive, that is what counts..here is your coat. Lets go!" He pushed her towards the door, helping her put it on as they walked. Nico was trying not to be too hard on her, but woman should shut up and listen, do what she told! Nico was nothing if not old world when it came to these things. The fact he was sleeping with Kate had no bearing on what he thought her place should be.

The waiting to hear was finally too much to bear for Hope. Maggie was on her way to stay with Julianna, and Hope called Julie and Doug to see if they may have heard anything. Glued to their television sets, they had tried to see if they saw Bo or any of the Bradys on the set, but no one familiar appeared. Over and over the news people had repeated that the historic Brady Pub was leveled, but there was no word on any of the people who had been known to be in the pub when it was bombed.

The moment Maggie walked in Hope was out the door, barely stopping to make sure Maggie had the cell phone number she would be on. Running, she made the waterfront area in ten minutes, and she began the desperate search for Bo and Shawn. Marlena was the first one she found, and although she was busy, still helping bandage the wounded, she hugged Hope like she would never let her go.

"They are all gone..Hope, all of them. What is happening?" Marlena was sobbing, but at the same time, she was giving a shot of morophine to the man whose arm was badly burned.

"Who is gone? Marlena? Tell me now!" Hope shook Marlena, demanding to know what she meant.

"Sean, Caroline, Sami, the kids..all the kids..even Theo Carver..they were all trapped in there!" Marlena was in agony, agony of regret, guilt, remorse, and the sorrow of someone who has lost a child. It was searing in its pain to her, for Sami was her child, her baby girl from so long ago.

**Chapter IV**

The resilience of children is an amazing thing. That is what the psychologist on the staff had said. As he watched from the balcony at the sight of the five of them playing and laughing on the beach, the wheel chair just out of sight, he had to admit that the psychobabble the man preached was correct. Left to the care of the two nursemaids who had been instructed to be kind to them, they seemed to be thriving. Apparently under the tutelage of the two nannies, and the youngest of the five, Italian was being spoken more and more in the nursery, and it had only been three weeks.

Samantha was improving by the day. Her bandages were being removed today, and she would for the first time see her real surroundings, and become completely aware of where she was and who it was who had saved her and the children. Chuckling to himself, he knew she would not be the slightest bit grateful. Her injuries from the blast concussion had gone beyond the shock to her eyes, internal injuries had also occurred that had necessitated some surgery. The scarring on her face was unfortunate, but repairable. She would be restored to her former beauty. He would make sure of it.. She was alive, her children were alive, that was what was important. Because of him, and him alone they would remain so.

The old man however was more trouble than he was worth, and it was probably a bad idea to have gotten him out of the building. The noise he made was disturbing to all the staff, and no one could get a civil word out of him. He would be reunited with his granddaughter and the children soon, but he was an annoyance

. "Ah, well, he will soon have another purpose, so it is well that he was saved", regretfully, Caroline had ran for the front of the building when the men had come in, and while she had escaped from his people, she ran into the path of the worst of the blast.

Monitoring the news reports, he knew she had died. That was so unfortunate, but things happen. The councils plans had been thwarted, and it must be up to EJ to take care of them. Until then, the lineage was protected and safe with him.

He motioned to the attendant who came over and pushed him back into the house. The elevator took him to the hospital level and he took his place in the observation room above the operatory to watch the unveiling of Samantha.

She was sitting up now, not too sure of herself, as the time in bed had been lengthy. Her limbs had been exercised by an excellent therapist, and some of the time she had even been connected to the Phoenix, to ensure she would remain ambulatory once she was completely well.

Now, all of the medical team was assembled, waiting to see how her eyesight would be after the unveiling. She seemed to sense the tension in the room, and her hands kept going to the bandages, ignoring the rough patch of scar tissue that was alongside the cheekbone area. It was red and firey looking, and as he looked down at her, he knew she would believe it destroyed her looks. He knew that was not true, but she would not be made aware of that knowledge. It would make other things easier for him to control.

The Doctor began to cut the first layer of bandage away. Sami called out once again for EJ. When she became a little too agitated, the sedative dose was administered again, it was calming, and it was designed to fog the memory as well.

"EJ is here little missy, he is waiting for you, you just let the doctor do his work, then you can see EJ and the family as well..quiet now..quiet.." the familiar voice did soothe her, and she floated once again on the cloud of euphoria, knowing soon she would see EJ, her children, everyone she loved once more.

Another layer came off, and as the light inside her gauzey world became a bit brighter, she tried again to come into full recognition, but once more the dosage was given to calm her down. The doctor cut another layer off, and unwrapped a bit more. Her lids blinked against the light, but still could not open. Her impatience was now overcoming the sedative, and she quietly told him, "Hurry, please , hurry."

Theo looked up at the balcony where he had caught another glimpse of the wheel chair man. That was what all the children called him, Wheel Chair Man. He tried not to let them see him, and it became a game among the children to try and spot him when he came out. They never let the duennas know, Theo knew instinctively that they should not.

"He is up there spying on us again!" Theo whispered to Justin. Justin knew he was not to look up, but find a way to sneak a look up the hill. He looked as he bent to pick up the ball they had been tossing about. Jessica was the next to look, holding up the shovel she had been building a sand castle with Kacie, and Ace to shield her face from looking directly at the spot Justin barely pointed his finger at..

"Wheel Chair Man is bastardo!" Ace was not at all reticient to say what he thought of the man. Of all the children, he was least affected by the change in their lives. He knew this place, he had spent much of his babyhood here. It had not been a bad time for him, he did not mind all that much. It was fun to have the others with him though, he had no playmates before, only the Bart Man.

He was bothered a bit by the baby crying in the night bothered him though, he seemed to be the only one who woke up at the sound. The duennas had made him return to bed last night when he had climbed out of his crib and opened the door to find where the sound came from. He had been looking up, the cry was coming from a top floor. He had never been up there before, but he knew if he was very quiet, he could get up there and see why the baby cried. Ace smiled to himself as he finished up his sand moat around his castle. Tonight would be a good time to go see the baby!

A cry of dismay escaped Samis lips as the last of the bandage was rolled away, and the flesh colored eyelid pads were removed. The light was blinding, and she blinked it away. Blurring figures floated in and out, but nothing distinct was visible to her. Fear caught hold of her as she tried to focus, and found she could not, no matter how hard she tried. She felt her chin being lifted, as a light was now shining directly into her eyes. It was not blackness, but it was still blindness..and it was just as frightening. The emotion she felt from the doctor also played into her fears..she could feel his pity!

**Chapter V**

Harris had slapped the phone shut for the third time, no answer again, and now his instincts were kicking in. Something was up at his house, and he was fearing for his son. Chandler was still giving television interviews with the commanders of the fire and police departments, and he had not been able to speak to her in over an hour when she had told him to call the house until Nanny answered.

"EJ, I need to send someone to check on my house, the phone is not being answered by the Nanny, Chandler is worried". Harris hated breaking into the wall of grief surrounding EJ, and he did not want to leave him alone, but EJ looked up, almost surprised to see that Harris was still there. EJ had really felt totally alone, an island in this sea of humanity rushing about, his eyes never straying from the sight of the now smoldering ruins of the pub.

"Harris, no..I will be fine..you go. Find out why, I don't want you to be uncertain, you must find out that your son is ok..in fact, make Chandler go with you. I see Chelsea over there, she can take over for your wife. I insist, no argument" EJ also felt uneasy over this development. All the descendants of the DiMera legacy were now unaccounted for. EJ knew no bodies had been recovered out of the Pub, he had kept a watchful eye on the emergency personnel, and the police department was now just an arm of his organization.

Chandler gave Chelsea a few quick instructions, confident that the young reporter was going to do fine, and she ran with Harris to the car.

"Really, she probably just has the phone turned way down, I am sure everything is fine, but thank you EJ, and I am praying for you now.."Chandler hugged EJ, giving everything she could into the embrace, trying to find hope in a hopeless time. He looked over the top of her head, shaking his own in doubt as he saw the firemen began to lift up debris, trying to find what he was praying would not be found within the pubs interior.

Hope had left Marlenas side to go to her husband and son. Bo was shaking with grief, and he sobbed into her arms. All she could do was be with him, letting him hold her for as long as he wished. Her heart too was broken, Caroline and Sean were as close to her as her own mother and father. It came sooner than she had expected, for she knew her husband well, he would have to find someone to place blame on, and she saw his sights land on EJ Wells.

"No, Bo, don't you have to listen to me for once!" she was holding onto his arm, as he angrily tried to shake her off and go to EJ.

"What? What Hope?" Bo was looking more furious by the second. "You know something happened that EJ had to pay for..only look who got in the way? My mother and father! He is behind this or the cause of it somehow..we all know it!"

"Bo..stop..Marlena just told me, Bo, Sami and the kids were inside the pub when this happened..my God Bo! His whole family is dead!"

Bo stopped..he looked at her in disbelief. "Sami..she was in there? The kids? Oh sweet Jesus, no..." again, Bo went through a grieving process. He and his niece had not been especially close, but when she had made it possible for Zach to come home alive, sacrificing her own freedom to do so, he had known the true measure of his niece. She had still married a DiMera, and that, he could not excuse. Now he realized all he had lost tonight.. so much of his family was gone now. That thought made him look at his wife and son, he reached for both of them, bowing his head in a prayer of thanks that he still had them, as well as Zach and Julianna.

Carrie came over to the group then, she had been busy with helping out at the firemans coffee station. It had been too hard to wait for news of Grandpa Sean, and her tears for Caroline were dry now, there had been too much to do. Hope reached to embrace her, saying, "Those poor babies, Sami, all of them..oh my God, Carrie, this is so awful!"

Carrie had forgotten the fact that Sami had been in the Pub with all the kids, but only one child was concerning her now! Katy...Katy had been in the back room with the others, with Caroline..where was she, where were all of them..where was Sami! In her preoccupation with Caroline, with Austin, and with Lucas, she had forgotten about all the others in the Pub this night. Finally, it was all too much for her to take in at all, and she had collapsed, Lloyd kneeling next to her, with a deep understanding of all she had gone through this night. The sun was just breaking the horizon, and an eerie quiet was taking hold.

All around them, the chaos was winding down. People were standing in small groups praying for the dead, the count was now at sixteen confirmed dead, with another seventeen people unaccounted for. Among those were Samantha Brady, her children, Justin six years old, Jessica his twin sister, Kacie, another twin girl of three, her brother Ace, also three, Theo Carver, age eleven, Sean Brady, seventy one...as she continued to read the list of the missing, Chelsea started to cry, losing her professional composure in front of the cameras. These were not just names to her, they were family members, friends, babies she had held and cared for, the very fabric of the soul of Salem was now torn apart with the terrible attack on the historic pub.

In the distance, the bells of St. Lukes Church began to toll. People were filing in to pray for those who had died, those who were injured, and for those who had seen their lives turned upside down in a matter of a few hours.

When the car turned up into the driveway, Harris heard Chandlers sharp intake of breath. She knew, felt, saw something was horribly wrong with the way the house looked. It was different, as though it had been violated, its trust misused...she could see that the house felt sad..and she opened the car door and ran for the front door screaming for her child! Her son! Her Baby...Liam! LIAM!!!!!!!!!!

**Chapter VI**

"Doctor Salvatore, I must admit I am disappointed. You said she would have no lasting effects, that her eyesight would be fine..now, she still cannot see..what is the reason for the misdiagnosis?" Piercing black eyes were fixed on the Doctor. He was only known to staff as Signor, and that was how he was always addressed.

"I assure you, Signor, she will be fine. It will be a matter of a few weeks, gradually the muscles will elongate again, and she will be fine." Hoping he sounded convincing enough, the cowering doctor regretted over selling what the patients recovery time would be. He had made it sound like it was only a matter of days, when he knew that was not the case.

"She is of no use to me with the handicap of blindness..you would not want me to have to dispose of her, would you Doctor. I see you all in the hospital seem to have made a pet of her. Not a wise idea. Now go, see to her, do what you must to restore her to her former self. The scar, though, lets wait a bit on that. I do want her to see it clearly when she is able to..that will be of importance to my plan."

Walking backwards out of the room, the poor man stumbled in his haste and fright. He wanted out of the presence of this sinister man. Was the money he was being paid worth the danger to his soul this place represented. Once out of the line of sight of the Signor, he had bolted to the room where the patient was again resting. From this day forward, he would measure her progress himself, and push it along as needed.

The children filed in to the room, hungry after the day of play, and eager to sample the meal being prepared for them. Anyone looking at them would have assumed that they were all docile little inmates in this beautiful prison, but that would have been a mistake.

Crying out for their mother had done no good, while the duennas seemed sympathetic, they would not respond to questions about her. Justin alone, had seen his mother being carried by one of the men to the floor above them. All of them banded together to pretend to cooperate, but each piece of information was added to what they already knew,

Grandpa Sean was taken downstairs, and they had not seen him, but they had heard the staff people grumbling about the old man, who was making all the racket. Theo was writing everything down in his notebook. He had learned from Chelsea that taking good notes was very important!

Ace had the ability to hide and remain unseen and unheard for hours, and the duennas were almost in awe of this little guy. He could speak fluently to them in Italian, so they learned it was unwise to have conversations in front of him. Who knew what he was retaining? Who knew indeed? The I.Q. test results that EJ had taken on him revealed an intelligence ten years beyond his age.

The first time Ace had crawled into the dumbwaiter and disappeared he had scared his siblings to death, but Theo had been full of admiration for the little guy. On this night when he had returned, crawling lightly past the sleeping nuenna, he had been grinning in triumph as he held forth the baby bottle as proof of his mission being accomplished!

"Bambino..I told you all, baby was here, crying I heard many times..now you believe me? I saw the baby..look at this!"

Jessica was first to take a look at the bottle, then she showed it to Justin. "This is Liams, remember, when Auntie Chandler brought him to see us, he had a bottle like this one!"

Justin knelt close to Ace, and asked him "The baby, has it got reddish hair?"

"The Baby has not much hair at all, but what there is, yes, it is orange colored..is that what you mean by red?"

This was not good news to Theo. His escape plan was getting more complicated by the minute, Mr. Brady was downstairs, Mrs. Wells was upstairs, and now a baby too! Flipping open his notebook, he wrote all this new information down.

Sean Brady had finished his daily tirade, and soon someone came in to see to his cell. For a basement cell, it had many comforts that Sean was not grateful for at all. If his freedom were to be taken, he did not want color television, or afternoon tea being served to him by a dumbwaiter precisely at four o'clock each day. This time, when the dumbwaiter bell jingled, he went to it, determined to throw whatever was sitting on that tray across the room!

When the door slid up, his brawny hand reached in and grabbed hold, almost tossing away what was there until he saw the curls atop the head of ACE!

"Good God Boy! What do you think you are doing?" Sean had looked behind him to make sure no one was looking as he peered in at the crouching figure of the mischievously smiling face.

Putting his finger to his lips in a shhhh motion, Ace handed Sean a small notebook and a pen. There was a note inside as well. He quickly read it, then in time honored IRA fashion, he had chewed it up and swallowed it. Ace looked at him in astonishment."Don't want the enemy finding out our secrets, now you take this one back up, and don't get caught!" Sean was elated, he now knew his great grandchildren were safe, and somewhere in this compound, his granddaughter Sami was well, just waiting on him to come to get her, and he vowed he would, or die trying!

Theo and Justin helped Ace climb out of the elevator, and when he proudly held out the note to Theo, all of them had huddled around to read what Sean had wrote!

"To my grandchildren., I am so happy to hear you are all safe, and your mother is safe, how these devils came to take us, is a mystery to me, but I swear, I will find a way to come to get all of you, your mother, and little Liam..I know who this devil is and I have never been beat by him yet! I will get word to you soon! Love Grandpa Sean.

When Theo finished reading it, Ace grabbed the note out of his hand and popped it into his mouth. He made a valiant effort, but try as he might, the paper gagged him, and he ended up spitting it out on the floor as he choked and spluttered.

"Just what was that about?" Theo queried.

"Don wan da enemee finding our secrets!" Ace spit out with the rest of the paper!

**Chapter VII**

His wife had collapsed against him when she had finally seen for herself the empty crib. As tight as he held her, she still managed to sink to her knees with the weight of her agony. She had seen enough in this one night to have brought an army surgeon to the ground, and she had not faltered, but this was the blow that took her will and her strength away.

Harris felt the weight of the blame, as he knew he had not taken the right precautions, but the woman had come out of the DiMera organizations file of trusted and screened personnel. What had gone wrong, and it was a case of willful kidnapping, as there was no sign of a struggle, which would have been expected. Nanny Bea was skilled in martial arts, firearms training, and evasive driving techniques, and this Nanny would have been no different! Obviously, she was a plant of some kind. His call to EJ was answered with the usual terse, "EJ here, what have you learned Harris?"

The question came from EJ as he was putting pieces of this puzzle together. Something did not fit, there were too many questions without answers that made any sense here. It was possible this was a pay back to Sean Brady from someone from his past with the IRA, or it could have been someone in the council ensuring the vote did not matter. EJ had rigged the vote so he would lose, then his plan had been to take out the council rather than follow its dictate to murder Samantha. Had they decided he should be shown who was really in charge? Hating himself for his hubris, and knowing his own sense of ego was probably the cause of all of this, he still managed to quiet the rage in his heart into a cold, iron, sense of purpose now. This all would be avenged, no matter the time, or the cost, his family would be avenged!

Hitting the motel television to try and bring it in focus, Lexie cursed it, slapping so hard at it, she injured her hand. None of what she had seen seemed real, and the laptop she had been given was now not working, it seemed the entire connection server system was down. The breaking news about the explosion in the waterfront district of Salem was on every channel, and she could not even get reception that lasted on even one of them! Figuring it had been long enough to have heard something, she decided to defy the orders of Harris and get into town. Running out, she was caught by a pair of strong arms, and she whirled about to fight at who ever had hold of her!

"Matt, you bastard! Let me go, I need to see what is happening, what if Theo was down by that explosion!"

He looked at her kindly, and waited a bit before deciding she should be told. The kid was her son, even though she was not exactly mother of the year material.

"EJ said to take you to the house, and no one is to see you yet Lexie, so come quietly, don't make me hurt you, ' his voice was calm, but left no room for argument, he would force her if he had to. " I will fill you in while we drive".

"Looks like whatever EJ had up his sleeve has backfired on him, is that what's going on? Did Tony outsmart him?" Lexie was defiant as always, and Matt could almost admire her for that.

"Tony DiMera is dead, this is not about him anymore".

"So the term the Phoenix Rises does not mean anything to you, huh? Well it should!" she hissed the words at him, not believing for a moment anyone had gotten the better of her brother. He was a devil, but he could always be counted on to cheat death. Just as her father had, and she would also. DiMera blood was almost insurance against death!

The hospital corridor was still flooded with guerneys of injured patients waiting to be looked at, and every medical facility within a hundred miles had sent assistance. The explosion had occurred at one of the worst possible times, when restaurant and bar patrons in the area were either just leaving, or just heading in for a nightcap. Couples often found their way there to stroll the pier, then walking along the area where the pub was situated, and this had been disastrous for so many of these young lovers.

Kate and Nico had rushed in, and Kate had cowered at the sight of so much blood and mayhem. The desk nurse had tried to calm her, but Kate was not one to be calm in the most ordinary of circumstances, and this was anything but ordinary.

Nico pushed her aside and demanded to know of the condition of Victor Kirakis, his first concern was for Victor. He managed to scare the poor woman enough that she pointed and stammered.."room 222, upstairs.." he muttered what could be taken for a thanks, then took hold of Kates arm to drag her with him.

"But Lucas, what about Lucas.." she pulled away and went to the desk again. "Tell me where my son is, Lucas Roberts, tell me now, or I am going to start screaming at the top of my lungs!"

Deciding it was best to get rid of this crazy woman so she could finish or try to finish the stack of charts that were still piling up, the nurse fished through it until she found the name.

"He is in surgery now, ma'am, besides his legs, he had some pretty serious internal injuries..please sit over there, we will call you when we know more". The nurse was kinder now, once she had seen the mother of this young man and how worried she looked.

Reality began to set in for Kate. Austin was dead. Lucas was horribly injured, and Victor was in here with a serious heart attack. Phillip..dear God..Philip, he was almost all she had left, she had to find him. She began running for the stairs to get to room 222, and Nico was on her heels.

"Mother, oh Jesus, Mother, they say he has to have a heart transplant, it is his only hope!"Phillip was crying like a baby in his mothers arms, and she was crying too, in relief at seeing him, probably the only son she would have after this horrible night ended. So intent on his presence, she had not heard his words at all. Victor mattered little to her, he was simply a means to an end, but the love she had for her sons was all encompassing and obsessive to a fault.

"Has he heard about Caroline" the first question Kate asked, as she had always known Caroline was first in Victor's heart.

"Yes, that is what brought this on..we got him revived with CPR, but the doctor says he has so much damage, he needs a new heart, and it has to be almost immediately.

Clearing his throat, the doctor entered the room and introduced himself to the family, announcing some news.

"You found a heart, this quickly? Doctor Curliss, that is fantastic, thank you so much!"

"There is a catch, the donor has a positive HIV status, but even so, the risks of waiting are worse than the fact your father will have to live with that. Without the transplant, he will be gone by tomorrow night!"

Kate felt the room whirl around her at what she was hearing. Her mind had already heard, digested, and catalogued what the doctor was telling them. Her son Lucas was also dead, and this monster was suggesting using his heart to keep this bastard alive!

It would not happen! She would never give permission for this! She voiced her opinion in no uncertain terms, until Phillip quietly reminded her.

"You have no say in this Mother, the decision to make belongs to Hana! She is his lawful wife!"

**Chapter VIII**

Opera music wafted through the hallways, eerie a tragic sound with no joy in the music at all. As her mind fought to get to a wakeful state, the infants cries started up again. This time Sami knew it was real, and she made herself sit up to try and find its' source. When she became aware of the pain from straining from the i.v, she stopped, staring down at the needle in her arm. It made her feel faint, and she knew there was a reason from long ago that she should react this way.

"Hey, now, missy, you are not supposed to be up yet, the doctor is coming in again in a few minutes to see you?" the blurred outline of the man bending over her was no longer comforting to her. A vague memory was returning, and it was not pleasant, a memory she associated with this voice.

Once again she asked for, this time with more insistence, "I want to see my husband now, bring him to me, or I am checking out of here right this minute!"

"You never change Samantha, that is what delights me about you! I could have you locked in a tower like Rebekka in Ivanhoe, and you would still order us about, as if you were a Queen. Aaah, but you are the Queen now, so how do you feel about being the one wearing the crown, the one I wanted your mother to wear once upon a time?"

"Who is there?" Sami was hearing but not believing the voice was real. She turned her face to the shadowed area the voice emanated from.

"Your reality is coming back to you now, so you know who I am. Search your memory, it is real, what you are thinking is real, I am real".

"Not possible, you have been dead so long, why is the baby crying? Whose baby is it? Where is EJ." Once again, the line between dream and wakefulness was indistinguishable as a bit more of the medication was put into her veins by the i.v. unit

Once the duennas had tucked them all in, and retired to their own rooms, blankets were thrown off as the children scrambled from their beds. Theo waited to hear the key turn in the lock, as each night they were kept within the room. The small night light they were allowed was used for all of them to look at the information Ace was bringing back each night.

Grandpa Sean had asked for them to find him a nail file or some type of tool that would be useful in picking the lock on his cell. Theo had looked all around for something like that, but could not find anything that worked.

"How about this?" and Jessica had produced a knitting needle taken from one of the duennas.

"Good job Sis!" Justin was looking at the little patch of knitting that Jessica had actually managed to do under the duennas patient tutelage. He seemed puzzled by the shape, and the number of gaping holes representing the dropped stitches that appeared every so often in the little bag.

Taking it out of his hands, she huffily told him, "Hey I was making you a marble bag, don't be mean!"

Sticking his fingers through one of the larger holes, he shook his head. "I woulda lost my best aggie in this thing, but nice thought!"

The bell on the dumb waiter jingled slightly, Theo had set a piece of cloth around the clanger to muffle it, now it was fairly silent when he returned. When he climbed out this time, Ace was quiet, as if he had been frightened by something.

Kacie took note of his mood first and went to him, taking his hand in hers. She offered him a piece of her orange she had saved from dinner, but he shook his head no. Orange was his favorite, and she looked at him puzzled, he often tried to sneak a piece of hers, and here she was offering of her own free will and he was saying no?

"What's wrong Acey," she asked him, her solemn brown eyes searching his face and waiting for him to tell them what was making him so quiet.

"Bastardo man got the Mama." Ace never referred to Sami as his mother, but as the collective Mama. Then Ace had grabbed the knitting needle to point it at his arm, imitating all the needles Sami had in her arms.

He took the pen from Theo, and the note pad from Justin. He drew three horizontal lines, and marked the third one. They knew he meant he had gone three floors up in the dumbwaiter.

"The Mama up there! The Bart Man there too, and Bastardo Wheel Chair man!"

Justin immediately came forward. "I want to go see her,"

Theo shook his head no, "You or I can't fit in the dumb waiter".

"Once it's quiet in the hall, I will go up the stairway, I will find her!"Justin was insistent, he had to find out if his mother was okay.

"The door is locked? How do you think you are gonna get it unlocked?"

Jessica came forward with the knitting needle, saying "We can try this, it might work. I watched a movie once where the crooks picked the lock, you just stick it in and squiggle it around a bit and hey!" the surprise she felt when the lock actually did give way shocked her.

The door opened slightly, but it was apparent that there was still a lot of activity out in the main hall. Staff, guards, and even people dressed in business suits were walking about. Closing the door again, they crouched down to plot their plan of escape. If Grandpa Sean found a way to get out of his cell, they would all just make their way down to the docks, get on a boat, and go back home. First they had to get their mother, and she and Grandpa Sean would take them home to daddy!

At last, the house seemed still, Justin had even dozed off while waiting, but Theo had taken it upon himself as the oldest to remain awake. When he thought it seemed quiet enough, he had shaken Justin awake, and out the door they had crept. The others were sleeping, no longer able to hold their eyes open, and Theo figured that was best. He had carried them all back to bed, with Justin helping him with Jess. He opened the door, and motioned for Justin to follow. Once they made it to the stairs, they would have to cover the three flights quickly, it was on the stairs they would have no place to hide if someone came. The hallways had many tables and screened areas to hide behind, but the stairs were wide open!

Justin turned and whispered, "I'll go first, so if anyone catches me, you run back to the room.!"

Being the oldest, Theo wanted to object, but Justin had already made it up to the first landing before he had gotten the words out. He looked up to see Justin motioning him to come up, quickly. The second floor landing had an enormous potted plant, and they both took advantage of it to hide as footsteps sounded on the stairs above them. Holding their breath, then letting it out in a collective sigh, they had watched as two women in nurses uniforms walked by, speaking in rapid Italian. When they had passed, the two boys made the run up the last flight of stairs, afraid to stop or look around, it was just enough to make it to the floor without being seen!

The apartment entry was wide open, no doors at all, so Justin walked in without any care at all. He could see the bed in the room down the hall, and as he inched closer, his eyes lit up, for lying there, breathing easily, and seeming like she was sleeping peacefully just as she would have been doing at home was his mother!

**Chapter IX**

EJ waited in his office for the police commander to come in with his reports. For the commander to be summoned in this way in any other city would have been looked at with suspiciously, but this was now EJ Wells' department in every way. The influence of the Brady family was long gone, and most people in the town did not seem to miss it. There was now very little crime, but if it did occur, it was quickly solved. EJ needed a peaceful town to raise his family in. Now he carried a burden of guilt for all of his plans had come to this. He no longer had a family.

Westin had been a good choice for Salem as police commander. Military training, several years in a detective division, and he was also a good administrator. He ruled with his head, not his emotions, and his family was the center of his life. Everything Abe Carver was not. EJ thought of Abe now, tethered to the Phoenix machine, destined to be kept there until Theo was old enough to not be weakened by him. It was hard, but it was the DiMera way. To EJ, Abes biggest mistake had been throwing Lexie aside after she had vowed to change. She should have been given the chance, but Abe and his pride stopped that from happening.

As EJ read the reports, his brow furrowed. Only three bodies had been recovered from inside the Pub, all grown up males. "What about my family? Why haven't they been found?"

"It is possible they, ..uh..well ..you know the heat, it could have been like the Towers, maybe there are no remains?"

"I refuse to believe my family is dead without some proof! Get a detail over there, and sift through that building until you can come back here either telling me conclusively my family perished there, or I will be conducting my own investigations privately. You know what that means!"

Westin understood.

Hope opened the door to her, ready to accept her well wishes, but Kate had no time for that, she was here on important business.

"Bo, thank God I found you! They want to pull Lucas off life support so Victor can have his heart..can you believe that? And Phillip is backing them up..Bo, get down there this instant and stop them! "

"My mother is lying in St. Lukes Church,a coffin, my father is burned to a crisp in the building, along with most of my nieces and nephews! Kate, do you think I care what is going on with Lucas and Victor? How can I stop them anyway, Lucas is married last I heard, so it seems his wife should be the one you talk to about this..now if you would care to sign the guest book, Hope, get her a pen, then you can be on your way."

Hope brought Kate over a cup of coffee, whereupon Kate reached into her purse to pull out her flask and pour a generous amount of whiskey into it. Bo could be pretty harsh at times, and Hope felt for Kates loss. She had one son dead, and another soon to be gone. If it had been Shawn or Zach it would have killed her too.

"Kate, you should be talking to Lucas's wife. She is the one who will make this decision, go to her, but remember, Victor is your remaining sons father, do you want Phillip to lose him? He is also Bo's father, and when Bo is calmer he will remember that, don't worry about what he just said, he does care about Victor" Hope was gentle as she spoke.

"Oh Hope, you don't understand, his wife is practically a heathen, she wears this shapeless moo moo thing all the time, with a rag covering her face. I can't wait to ship her back where she came from, the whole marriage is a travesty!"

Hope lost patience then, "She is his wife, if he married her, it must mean he loves her, and she loves him. Who cares what she is wearing. Kate, you and your insistence on interfering with your kids lives has never worked out for you or them." As she said this, Hope was opening the door for Kate to leave.

Once again, the haughty look replaced the desperate one as Kate picked up her purse and coat, saying, "I just remembered why I have never liked you!" one step ahead of the door slamming, Kate made her exit.

Tippin was organizing some tidbits and tea for the meeting going on in the Wells family room. When he entered with the tray, he fought back the tear that was threatening to roll down his stiff upper lip. There were so many reminders of the little folk in this room. However, he had his duty to attend to. Mr. Wells would count on him to keep things rolling until all was settled.

"Someone has them, they are not dead. I don't even think Caroline was a target, she must have not cooperated, or ran, something. Liam as well, so this is not the work of the council, at least taking them. It may be a ransom demand, and we just have not heard about it yet".

To Chandler, this was welcome news, but she still turned her head into Harris shoulder to cry again. EJ nodded to Tippin, who came to her immediately with a cup of tea. "This is a very special blend, a Nanny's recipe from way back. Drink it, you will feel much better."

"What would they want with so many hostages?, That seems hard to manage to me, and with one of them being Ace, they may have a Ransom of Red Chief on their hands." Matthew offered a small wry humorous observation. EJ looked at the portrait of the young hellion on the table, knowing exactly what Matthew meant.

"I am thinking if we get no ransom demand, there may even be another angle to this, what if someone knew of the council plans, and decided to interfere. Who ever this is might want these children protected..'

"And who might that be?" Lexie asked.

"Your father, Stephano DiMera!"

**Chapter X**

Snorting her disbelief, Lexie gave EJ a look of disdain. The others in the room knew showing disrespect like that to him was not a good thing, but EJ let her have her say. "You know my father is dead, that is why you have all of this.."she swung her arm around the room. "It should not be yours, but somehow you wormed your way into his good graces..God knows, I never made it into the inner circle! Guess I should have married a Brady!"

"Stephano has made the people of Salem think he has died many times, why would he have any problem doing it again? And if he thought he was really acting in the best interest of his legacy, this is something he would do..Lexie, you know in your heart this is a possibility, there has not been a single body found. I for one, prefer to think he is hiding all of them somewhere safe, rather than they are a pile of ashes inside that funeral pyre!"

Embracing his wife, Harris gave a sign of agreement. Matthew was thinking along the same lines, only Lexie expressed her doubt.

"Why should I believe you EJ? If that council vote had gone through, then you were going to lose..my vote would have ensured it. The council would have given you orders to do exactly what you did! I think you are lying!" She had finally lost it, and she went against him, swinging her hand in the arc of a woman slapping, aiming to inflict pain and humiliation. He caught her hand and pressed hard, waiting until her heard her cry of pain signaling her submission.

The phone rang, and Tippin brought it in, knowing EJ was accepting this particular call. "Dr. Ford here, letting you know that the wife of Lucas Roberts has consented to the donation of the heart. We will be doing the surgery on Mr. Kirakis within the hour. It is as you wished, and it looks like a viable match."

"What about the HIV status? When will we know if it is conferred?" EJ was still settling old scores, nothing was allowed to get in the way of things like that.

"Oh, he definitely will be positive, there is no doubt about that"

"Excellent..good work Dr. Ford. I am always amazed at how things have their own way of working out in the end". EJ had never planned on Lucas ending this way, but when his injuries were as serious as they seemed to be, it almost seemed the kindest way. Austin had died too, unfortunate, but Kate was now feeling the pain she seemed to think was her duty to keep inflicting on Samanatha. Her family now consisted of Phillip, who would be be busy keeping his father alive, Billie, who really had no use for her, Chelsea, who still had secrets to keep from Kate, and a grandson from a daughter in law that Kate also despised. As EJ had said to Dr. Ford, things did have a way of working out.

A hospital waiting room is a terrible place for those in it. They have the burden of the wait, while the patient only has one thing to think about. Living or dying. Victor was thinking about living, and he was grasping at life with everything he had left, which was not much. If it had been a heart from a completely healthy donor, Dr. Ford would not have wasted it this way. But Victor was older, so the thought of living his life with HIV was not a huge concern. The board had okayed the surgery with few objection. Mr. Kirakis was a member, and he told them to go ahead. He needed to buy the time Phillip would need.

Of course, Lucas may have survived a bit longer , if a few other medical interventions had not been taken by the well paid Dr. Ford. Mr. Wells took care of his own. Guilt might have intervened in Dr. Fords decision, but looking at the young man, both legs gone, and his blood tests showing the T cells he had growing weaker under the onslaught of the HIV that was working against him had helped him along in his decisioin. This was really the kinder way out, as he had fed the solution into the tube of his i.v.

Kate sat and glared at everyone else in the room. Hana, the bitch who had signed the order, Phillip, the son who was willing to betray his brother for a father who would have disowned him at birth had she not begged him to let them stay, and of course, Annalies, the blonde Swiss whore who even now was holding onto Phillip as if he were her lifeboat. If she thought for one moment she would end up keeping Austins son away from her, she better think twice! Sami had tried that and look what happened..then Kate remembered what had happened. It had ended with Will dying, but Kate quickly shook off any feelings of guilt she may have had over that. Time proved out that it was all EJ's fault!

The doctor came out to them, almost smiling, but trying to remain as respectful as possible as he told them, "The harvest went very well, he went very peacefully, and the heart is on its way up to the team working on Mr. Kirakis as we speak?"

Hearing the word harvest spoken about her son brought Kate to her knees in a spasm of grief. She had never thought of it as a harvest! My God, how could medical personnel be so heartless? Phillip came over to her, trying as hard as he could to make her feel any better.."Mom, he went peacefully, and now his heart is going to give Father new life, and hope..isn't that better than it just rotting away in his corpse when he is buried?"

She looked at her son in disbelief at his words, not wanting to hear that about her dead son. "I hope," she spit out at him, "You are not trying to make me feel better!"

Disgust at her was his reaction. With her it was always about Lucas, then Austin, and he came a distant third was how Phillip felt. Leaving her, he went to Annaliese. This woman had lost her husband, and was left alone with a young son to raise. Phillip had already decided that she would not have to worry about being taken care of. She was attractive, and he knew she could bear children. He could do worse, and so could she. He could tell by the way she was looking at him, she had the same thought.

A different story was going to be written for Lucas's widow. She was not made to live in this country, and she had made no effort to fit in. The clothes, the always going into her closet to pray, none of it was going to work in the Kirakis world. Besides, she carried the disease, and Victor would not want her around reminding him of her condition. An unfortunate accident may be in her future. Phillip pulled out his blackberry to note in it: Hana, May 15.

**Chapter XI**

The light stroking of her face was pleasant, and Sami turned her face into it, rubbing her face against the small hand she knew so well. Justin often woke his mother up on Sunday mornings this way. It had been his habit to sneak in, and wake her up so she would come downstairs and read the funny papers with him. He knew he was probably getting a bit big to want to sit and cuddle with her, but it still was something he liked, and was not ready to give up. He was not sure what day this was, but his mother knew, as she woke up and smiled.

"Did you bring the paper in?" she was looking at him as if they were both back home, her safe in bed with Dad, and him quietly summoning her to their weekly ritual. Then his fingers went to the area on her cheek that covered about three inches of her face in a swollen redness.

"Mom, does that hurt?" Justin was concerned that she was in pain, but truth was, the burn had gone deep enough that the nerves were a bit damaged, and though she felt his fingers on her face, it was through a numbness. For the first time she herself reached up to feel the uneven bumpiness, and her vanity took over.

"Justin, bring mommy a mirror please! I have one on my bureau". Justin looked at her in confusion, as he knew he was not at home, how come she did not? Then it struck him as he looked about the room. Except for the hospital type bed she lay in, and still was not aware of, this room did look like the bedroom she shared with Dad. He walked over to the bureau, and sure enough, a silver handled mirror lay next to the hairbrush he had seen her use nightly so many times. He hesitated, he did not want her to use the mirror. Something was not right with her, and his instinct was to stall.

He could see all the tubes that were hooked up to her, with bags of fluid attached, but his mother took no notice. She seemed to believe she was at home, and the next time she spoke confirmed it.

"I guess your Dad got up to go out for a run, funny, I did not hear him leave." Then she noticed Theo for the first time.

"Good morning Theo, my, you are up early too. Have you been down to breakfast yet? This is waffle day! Go on down, and have Tippin order you up your favorite kind!" Then Sami had attempted to sit, which was a trigger mechanism for more medication to be realeased.

She slumped back down onto the bed, and was fast asleep again. The whirring sound coming from the next room caught the attention of Justin and Theo. A clanking sound, then they could see..it was an elevator door, and it was beginning to open! Both of them dived under Samis bed, and tried to blend into the floor!

The wheelchair man was being pushed into the room by a figure clad in white shoes, and stockings, with a white unform. Theo inched out a bit, he wanted to see the face attached to the legs, but Justin pulled him back. The wheelchair was pushed right up against the bed, and it was apparent the legs were straining to enable his arms to reach up to his mother. This made Justin tense and squirm, trying to stop this, but now, Theo was the one to grip his arm, and make a pleading look for calm with his eyes.

"This will soon be gone, my Dear, I cannot allow this to mar your beauty. So much like your mother in some ways, but thank God not all ways! It is almost time for us to make you more aware of what has happened. I saved you all, you know. If not for my intervention, everyone would have died. Now, I must be repaid for my help. That is how it is done. Favors are returned, wrongs are avenged. This is the DiMera way. Now I must leave you, sleep well, you have earned it, as I have earned mine." When the wheelchair man had finished speaking, he seemed to pause, as if sensing something within the room.

Theo felt it, as if he had known what the man was thinking too. Why, he could not say, but it was something that he sensed. These premonitions had been coming to him since his grandmother had been killed, but now were becoming stronger. Theo know somehow the man seemed to be aware of their presence, but he did nothing, just had his attendant wheel him back to the elevator.

The two boys came out of hiding then, and went to inspect this elevator. It had a key activator, but when Theo examined it, he knew it could be jimmied, and he looked about the room for something to use. A small allen wrench next to the equipment Sami was hooked to seemed perfect, and he pocketed it. Using the elevator was too dangerous now, but it might be useful later..

They made it back to the room, and Justin hugged onto his siblings..he had such good news! Only Ace did not seem enthused, just matter listening in an offhand way as Justin told of seeing and speaking with Mom!

"I want to see her too, next time I go with you!" Jessica was in her stubborn mood, one of the traits she had inherited from her mother.

Theo spoke,"It is too risky, Jess, and they have her hooked up to all kinds of stuff, I think they are keeping her on some kind of sleeping medicine!"

Kacie listened, and for a three year old, she had some memories no child should have. "you pinch the tube to make it stop!"

"What do you mean, show us!" Justin was as sure as Theo that the tubes in his moms arm was doing something to her, but he did not understand what Kacie meant.

Kacie looked over to the snack table, and saw the straw holders. She ran over and picked out one of the juice straws and showed them.."like this" and she pinched the straw as if it was a piece of medical tubing. Kacie had been hooked to these things for so long while she was in hospital, and had seen the nurses clip off her i.v. tubes many times to move the needle to an different spot, or to change out the bags. Sometimes when they clipped it off, she had either started feeling pain, or had woke up and felt better.

"I think she has something here guys!" Theo was clear on what they had to do. He gathered them all in a little circle on the floor and began to tell them his plan!

**Chapter XII**

Carolines funeral morning had broke bright and clear, as if everyone saying good bye to her had a right to do so in the same way she had lived her life, open to the sun. Victor sat in his hospital room, as alert as he had been in days, and watched the proceedings on television. The news crews had decided the burial of the woman who had been the heart of the Brady Pub for so many years was something worth covering. Scowling at the sight of the news vans camped outside St. Lukes Cemetery, Victor reached for the pitcher at his bedside to pour a glass of water when his visitor stopped him, and poured it for him.

"Hana, thank you, but really, you don't have to stay here with me all the time, you need to be at home getting some rest". He looked at her kindly, she had been with him almost continually since he had woke up from the surgery. It would normally have made him uncomfortable and irritated, but now, he found her presence soothing, and when she reached to grasp his hand, he was pleased. It was strange, he realized,, but she was the one who calmed him while he watched his beloved Caroline go to her final resting place.

"You have the heart now of my Lucas, you are good man now, like he was. I stay with you ok?' and Hana had sat with him while the news played the funeral, while the faces of the townspeople who had loved her came and went, some talking to the cameras, some refusing.

Bo Brady has stopped in front of the cameras and scowled. When a reporter tried to push a mic in front of his face he has erupted, which was what the newspeople lived for!

"You slimy bastards, let us bury her in peace! Go shove your camera in that mans face"Bo pointed to EJ, "He caused this! He has done so much evil in this town, we will never know it all, and it didn't matter to him that he killed his own wife and kids in the process!"

"Mr. Brady! You mean to say you think EJ Wells may be responsible for this tragedy? But hasn't the Police Commander said they have no suspects in this case? " the question posed, brought Bo's other tirade.

"He owns the police now, and he probably owns you too!" Bo hissed the words, then pushed his way through, shielding Hope and his children from any more of the hurt that the press was adding onto.

EJ saw the reporters heading his way, and steeled himself, readying his noncommittal smile reserved for most idiots. Beginning with Bo Bradys accusation, all the way through to asking him about his current standing and connections to the DiMera Empire, EJ remained the calm, but grieving funeral guest, only her to pay respects to his wife's grandmother, the great grandmother of his children. When they pushed him as to when he would be having services for his own family, he had looked at them with the cold and deadly eyes of a snake, saying only "We will discuss that when any and all remains have been recovered, now please excuse me!"and he had entered the church.

John observed EJ from the vestibule as he entered. This was not a man who was used to showing grief, or this was not a man grieving. Something in his demeanor made no sense. Harris not being here was another question. He loved Sean and Caroline, so why was he missing? John escorted Marlena to a place, close to the rest of the family there to bury their mother, grandmother and friend.

Matthew sat next to Chelsea, holding her hand. He knew she should have been sitting with her dad, and her half siblings, but like Sami, she had a tenuous welcome in that little grouping at best. Zach returning from the dead had not been enough to make them include her in the bosom of the family, and now she was not inclined to push things anymore. Then he had seen her face light up! In through the church doors came a woman Matt had heard about, but never met. It was Billie Reed, Chelsea's mother, and he could see the resemblance between the two. They were both dark eyed beauties, both with a sadness in their eyes so much of the time. Billie came to Chelsea and gave her a warm embrace, then looking at Matt, waiting for her introduction.

Phillip Kirakis escorted his mother in, she was having difficulty walking, and it was now apparent, she was over sixty. The past years had left a mark, and the alcohol that she was now addicted to was taking a toll on her looks. Her face was marred with blotchy red spots, and her eyes had a rheumy look to them when she removed her sunglasses. She was still a handsomely haughty woman, but now she seemed to be weighted down with grief, having just buried two of her sons the day before. Now, once again in the same church the services had been held for Austin, and the mutiliated Lucas, she stumbled, only to be kept upright by Phillip and Nico.

The full Brady contingent was there, Kayla and Patch, who now resided in New Orleans, where she ran a clinic for the poor, and Patch worked on redevelopment housing for the still displaced hurricane victims. Both projects had been heavily funded by EJ Wells.

Stephanie had left the racing circuit, accompanied by her fiancé, another racer to attend, and since EJ was her sponsor, she had stopped to wish him well, and say he was also in her prayers.

Kim also made a showing, one of the few she would ever make again in Salem. Her illness was progressing faster now, and she was making the pilgrimage now to pay her last respects to her mother, her father, her family, and the town. No one knew she was dying, and she did not want to share that news with anyone, they would all know what they had to know soon enough. Her son Andrew was in Iraq, and her ex husband Shane Donovan was working still with the ISA, and they were the only ones who were aware of the tumor now invading her brain.

The sobs in the church were beginning even before Father Jankins made his way to the podium. The favorite hymns were being sung by the choir, when Harris made his way into the church. His love for Caroline had made him appear, even though Chandler was home, trying to work through the week that had passed. No one was being told of Liam's disappearance, it was to be announced tomorrow, as a Nanny kidnapping. Harris had left her, saying "I hafta do this, for her and Pop Sean".

He made his way to the choirs section, and took the mic, nodding to the music director to begin on of Carolines favorite hymns, "when lilacs last in the dooryard bloomed" and when he had finished the last of the song, the tears had began a flood down his ruddy and handsome face.

**Chapter XIII**

Father Jankins had finished his liturgy, and had spoken out about how he had come to know and love Caroline. It was an unstructured service, which was how Caroline had asked to be remembered in her will. So when the call went out for those in the audience who wished to say a few words in rememberance, EJ was the first to stand and ask for the floor.

The crowd in the church let out a collective murmur, some of dismay, some of gratitude, and some of curiosity. Carrie reached out for Marlenas hand in anger. She could not help her anger towards EJ, Katy was dead, if she had been with her, Carrie knew she would still be alive.

EJ ignored the look her got from Carrie, he ignored a lot of the looks he was getting, but when he began to speak, his words were listened to.

"There is no one here who has not been touched by this woman, in some way or another. Greatness was found in all the little things she did for so many, and I am no exception. Caroline Brady gave me what so many have always denied me. Acceptance. I am not a perfect person, she still loved me. I have made mistakes, she forgave those. This was also what she gave Samantha, my wife, her granddaughter.

If Samantha were here today, she would be remembering an abiding love that was showered on so many by this woman. Samantha would be the first to say that her Grandmother was a person who forgave much.

I run an organization that was founded by a man who many in this room feared and despised. I understand that, but when I married into this Brady legacy, I gave up wanting the world to fear me, I wanted respect. The kind of respect given to this woman who we are taking to her final rest today is something that cannot be bought or bargained for, it is earned on a daily basis. She has earned mine.

I have taken the podium today to ask for your prayers, and your good wishes in what I am about to reveal. As of now, I renounce any ties to the DiMera organizations, I will be severing ties with any and all business entities associated with them! Furthermore, I am giving notice to any and all who may be listening..my family is alive! I believe Sean Brady and Theo Carver to be alive as well, and I am asking all here who want to join us, help us bring them back alive!

As many of you have heard, there has been a power struggle within the DiMera organization, by some who think I may not be the right person to head it. They may be right, as my desire to run an Evil Empire is waning. I wanted a decent life for my children, I want a decent town for them to grow up in. I want a world where they have a chance, and their children as well. I think my association with the scientific community and my investments in the coming race to save the world from global warming has worried some in the organization that I may not have the right stuff.

EJ paused to let all this sink into the minds of the crowd. Then he spoke again,

"Harris, my loyal and steadfast ally in all of my work here in Salem has also suffered during the past few days. Besides the love he had for both Caroline and his grandfather,Sean Brady, he is now suffering another unbearable loss. He an his wife, Chandler, have been the victims of another crime we think is the work of the DiMera Organization. Their infant son, Liam, has been kidnapped from their home, the same night of the horrible tragedy that took Caroline Brady from us.

We are all suffering in this terrible week. I am reaching my hand out, to all of you who have mistrusted me in the past, I want us to work together. This is all our family that is out there somewhere waiting for us to help bring them home, make them safe again, to let them come and say their goodbyes to this woman.

Look into your hearts, what would Caroline want her deaths legacy to be? That we all continue to hate and distrust each other? Plotting our little plans of revenge or one upmanship? I think I have known her well enough to say she would want this:

Please, bring my husband home. Bring my granddaughter, Sami home, bring her children home, bring Harris and Chandlers child home, Sean and I love them all so much.

For that was Caroline Brady's message to us all.

Love one another, be kind to one another, help one another." EJ finished, and walked over to Bo Brady, he extended his hand, but Bo brushed it aside, instead pulling EJ into an embrace that welcomed him to the family, while whispering in his ear, "If you meant all that, I want to help you bring Pop and your family back to Salem! I'm in brother!"

John and Marlena both left their pews, and Steve and Kayla followed. Harris came to give EJ backup, with Matt and Chelsea close after. Kim followed, a tad weakly as she was now dependent upon a cane for steadying her walking. She had explained the cane to those who asked by saying she had sprained an ankle recently. Carrie had held back, but as she saw the circle of Bradys tightening around EJ, with Hope hugging him in congratulations, she had to come too. Lloyd stayed back, letting her into the circle of the family, not wishing to force himself in.

John was the first to voice it, the fear that everyone had, but did not want to say aloud. "So does it look like the Phoenix may have risen up from the ashes once again?"

Harris looked at EJ, waiting for him to say the words first.

"If he has not, then my family is dead. I pray he has come back, for at least then we know it is not just money that is the cause here, Stefano would only do something like this for the sake of the family, not the destruction of it!"

Steve was next to speak, and Kayla nodded her approval. "If you need me, I'm with you on this. I want my niece and her kids brought back safe, and the old man too! I never much took to you Squire Crumpets, but I got your back on this caper!"

Kim introduced herself to EJ, "Sorry I never made it out to your wedding, wow! The first one with Sami that I actually really missed something! I just want you to know, I will make sure that Shane gives you whatever help he can too. I think having an ISA senior operative should give you some assistance, huh?" her eyes twinkled as they always had, but EJ could see she was in some pain. He resolved to have her medical condition looked into. He was still maintaining most of his connections after all!

John stepped forward, but Marlena was still uncomfortable with EJ, she knew he probably would never forgive her for what she had done. She was wrong. Now he wanted all the help he could get, all the support he could get.

"Marlena, or Doctor Evans, which ever should I call you? Kacie still has medical issues to face, we must get her home..please, John, Marlena, will you join with us to help bring that about?"

"Partner, I thought you would never ask!"

**Chapter XIV**

Pacing back and forth in his cell, Sean Brady waited for the sound of the dumb waiter coming down again. When he heard the whirring sound that meant it was en route, he looked to see if anyone might be about, seeing the coast clear, he opened up the door to take out his meal, and greet his great grandson once more.

Ace sat crouched, looking up at the old man. The notes being passed back and forth had given the kids instructions to explore the island, and see if any vessels that could be used to get away were moored close enough to get to

"Hey, little fellow! What do you have for me today?..Wonderful, I knew there had to be some boats around here somewhere! Tell Theo good job, these are the numbers I need, I know several of these types, and this one here will suit us perfectly! Just the right amount of room, and a little bit of speed.!"

As a group, the children were given pretty much run of most of the small island that was unfenced. The area where the boats were moored was between a small lighthouse bordered by a quay, and when the tide was out they were able to wade out where the boats were anchored. If the tide was in, it was impossible, as the water was at least ten feet deep, but at low tide the duennas let the kids walk out, checking out the fishing boats belonging to some of the locals who lived the other side of the island in the old villages. Sadly, most of the fishing was played out, and the ones who made a living on the island now made it in some way working for the man who lived in the big castle on the hill. The boats were now mostly in disuse and in need of repairs.

Theo had diligently walked around most of them, noting make, year, and engine size from the markings Sean had written up for him to look for, now Ace was delivering the information to Grandpa Sean.

Ace brought the information each day at the afternoon tea that was sent down to Sean. Ace was glad to do it, that was when the best cookies were put on the tray, and he always managed to stuff a few in his pockets. The duennas were very insistent that the children not have too many sweets, so these cookies were a treat for all of them when he brought them back.

Sean was beginning to see the way of the great escape. .He had used the knitting needle on the rust covered lock on his cell, and with a bit of jiggling, he could get the cell door open. Sean had many times picked a lock on a jail cell, and he was glad to see it was like riding a bicycle, once you learned, you never forgot how! His prior association with the likes of Stefano DiMera was still paying benefits. Pride in his great grandchildren was also growing, as well as in Theo Carver. The children had devised their own plan for getting their mother out of the confines of the castle and Sean had laughed with delight when he heard what they planned. It was just simple enough and devious enough to work perfectly!

This time, it would be Justin and Jessica who made the foray into their mothers room. It was also decided they would try the elevator, if they were caught, they planned to cry they got lost, the house was so big, and it was an accident. Jessica was a natural born actress, so it was decided she would do the wailing and Justin would just stand by, and pat her as if comforting her if they got caught! Kacie told them what they needed to find, they needed some of the shot sticks, and if they could find it, any vials of the small bottles of medicine that the nurses would use on the bags in Mom's i.v. If they could get that back to her, it would be easy to make the duennas very very sleepy!

Lately, the children had all developed a game to give them a chance to get more familiar with the castle, and to make the duennas think it was just children being children! They would scatter themselves in the hallways, each of them running a different direction, causing the duennas to shriek and chase them, often calling on other staff members to catch them up. Most of the staff was good natured about it, as the children were mostly a friendly bunch, save the young blonde boy! They knew he could be dangerous to catch, as he had a ready kick, and sharp little teeth. The advantage to that was, Ace got the furthest away, and he was the one who found the elevator entrance for the nursery floor!

He saw them put the wheel chair on it, then the doors closed. Not waiting to be caught by the other staff, he had boldly gone right into the room the wheel chair had been brought out of and came out spinning the wheels on another chair, barreling right down on the ones who had just seconds before been chasing after him! His little arms had been pumping the wheels as fast as he could, before he noticed the little panel of lights on the side! Pushing one, he found the wheels going by themselves, and the chasers soon became the chased as he had laughed with delight! The melee of catching up to him, and replacing the chair in the room where it belonged had made the staff not think about all that Ace would have observed on his little adventure.

And so it was that on this evening, Justin and Jessica were able to use the elevator to go up to their mothers apartment once again.

"Mom, it's us, Jessica and Justin, wake up now, " the tube had been pinched off as Kacie had said needed to be done, and minutes later they were rewarded by the sight of their mother's beautiful blue eyes waking up to her two oldest children sitting at her bedside. It took her a moment to come fully alert, but once she did, she seemed to be alarmed at something.

"You can't let him find you here! What are you doing?" Sami and her semi conscious state of the past couple of weeks had gradually been coming more and more into focus. The conversations she had heard in her twilight sleep now became clearer, as her mothers instinct for protecting her children came into play.

"Please, go back, go back now!' She was hugging them to her, and pushing them away at the same time.

"Mom, no, we have to take you out of here!..We are going to to it tomorrow! All of us are leaving..even Papa Sean! On a boat Mom, back to Daddy!" Jessica wanted to make sure her mother knew what was happening.

"Mom, I am going to fill up these medicine bags with just water ok? So they can't make you stay sleepy anymore..Jess, find the clamps to put on them, nothing will go in your arm now Mom..you are going to be safe now, so you just pretend to be asleep ok! We are going to come and get you soon!"

Justin quickly dumped the i.v bags out, refilling them with just water, at the same time placing a small clamp under her wrist bandage. To keep the nurses from knowing that none of the liquid went into her arm, he made a small slit in the tubing with a small knife taken from his dinner tray. The liquid would drip out onto the floor, so he put a towel down to catch it. They had to make sure she stayed awake until they came to get her!

Sami watched all their preparations, amazed at how brilliant her children were! They told her that Papa Sean had told them a lot of what they had to do, and how Ace went back and forth with the notes of the plans! It was going to be foolproof! In no time at all they would all be off this island heading back to Salem!

**Chapter XV**

By the time Jess and Justin stole away from their mother, the three of them had gotten all the details of their plan down exactly. Nothing could go wrong, and they would get the duennas clothing up to her during the night. When they undressed for bed, they were going to steal their clothing, one set for Grandpa Sean to wear, and one for their mother! Ace would get the set down to Grandpa, and Theo and Justin were going to take a set to Mom! The tea the duennas drank would have the medicine that was being given to Mom, so they would sleep! Papa Sean would get out of the cell, and make his way up the stairs looking like the servant that came to clean.

It was so beautiful in its simplicity. They would all then walk down to the quay, push one of the boats out to the higher tide area, start up the motor, and out to the sea they would go! Sean knew that they had to be close to a shipping lane of the Mediterranean, Stefano always retreated to his Italian roots when he wanted to hide out. It would only be twenty or thirty miles at most, and they would find cruise ships or tankers that would pick them up.

The night was a humm of activity in the nursery, as the duennas slept like two oversized angels in their room. Kacie was busily putting pillows with the heads of various dolls into the beds to make it look like they were all snug in their beds when the duennas came to wake them, if the duennas were able to wake themselves!. The tea they drank had been heavily laced with the medication from Samanthas medical supplies. During the night Kacie and Jessica had added to it by slipping in, and giving them even more with an injection. Kacie had been very observant during her hospital stays, and impressing Jessica so much that her sister had said "you should be a doctor when you grow up!"

Theo and Justin had made several visits to the elevator, sending it up to the apartment suite several times, and once to Liams nursery. The duenna assigned to Liam was a problem, so now the plan was to see that Liam woke up and began crying a lot. When she went to fix the bottle, they would put the baby into the dumbwaiter and send him to the nursery downstairs. That seemed to be the best shot.

"How will you make him cry?' Kacie had a soft heart and was worried.

Ace held up a safety pin, and grinned.

"You boys are so mean!"

Jessica concurred, but agreed it was the best way to make the baby scream bloody murder, and demand for attention now!

Theo thought a moment, "But we must make him stop crying and be quiet while we get away, how can we do that".

Kacie gave a sad look, knowing how it felt to always have needles pricking at you, and she went to one of the small syringes, and pointed at the medicine bag. She filled one, and told Ace, "you are gonna be with the baby, do this!" and she went to pick an orange out of the fruit bowl and showed him how to do an injection.

Sean heard the dumbwaiter coming down, giving a quick look around to see if anyone was within earshot. It was eerily quiet, no one had been down to him in hours, and someone usually came at least once an hour. Stefano must be slipping in his security was all Sean could think. When it opened, Ace was there, next to a small pile of black clothing. He took them out, slipping them over his own clothing, topping it off with the black headscarf.

"Ace, me boy, how do I look?" Sean had twirled around for effect.

Giggling, the blonde haired tyke gave a thumbs up, handing over the not from Theo with the directions on how to get through the house to the nursery. As usual, after reading it, Sean put it in his mouth, chewed the paper, swallowing the note.

Ace looked at him with admiration. He had tried and tried, but paper just would not go down his throat, gagging him every time. Theo had now made sure when any note was handed to him by Ace, he hurried to burn it at a candle. It would not do for Ace to get sick and the duennas come running to see what was the matter!

Sami also was getting dressed in the duennas clothing at this time. The dress was yards too large for her, trailing the ground, and threatening to fall beneath her bosoms. Jessica looked about and saw the drapery tie backs. She took them, and fashioned a makeshift belt for her mother, then led her to the elevator to meet with the others.

In a matter of an hour, the children had accomplished most of the rendezvous necessary for the escape. Papa Sean was there in the room with them, their mother was there, nervously hugging all of them, asking how they were, and trying to keep her scar hidden with the scarf. The baby was sleeping soundly, Kacie was keeping watch over him like a mother hen. All was going as planned.

The screens in the security room were showing all of this, and the figure in the wheelchair was laughing heartily. This had been the greatest amusement he had witnessed in so long.

"I am so impressed with all of these kids, what DiMera spirit! Have you ever seen anything like this Bart?"

"Boss, they are all keepers! I agree with you all the way!"

"I know, but we have to stop their fun now, before they hurt themselves, what if they gave the baby too much of the medication, get a doctor here right away!" 

**Chapter XVI**

It was three days of getting the Fancy Face II together that kept the four men busy. Bo was agreeing to this, only if he was going as the captain of the ship, and all who sailed with him agreed to follow his orders. EJ was amenable to it, Harris had no objection, the one who objected the most was John. He felt as the senior one, the one who had the ISA experience, and the knowledge of how Stefano DiMera worked, he should be the one in charge of the mission.

EJ had talked in private with John, showing him that since Bo was the more experienced sailor, he would be the one who handled the running of the boat. John would be given the main say in how to deal with Stefano when and if the time came for negotiating. As for any moves to gain the captives, EJ wanted to have the power of veto. This was after all his family they were trying to save, along with the infant son of Harris. Everyone had some voice in it, but he was willing to let Bo dictate how matters and duties would be delegated onboard the Fancy Face.

They figured it would be a ten day sail to get near the island that EJ remembered as being the one Stefano favored. It now seemed the death of Stefano had once again been greatly exaggerated. But each of the four had a different scenario as to what Stefanos motives had been for remaining out of the spotlight for the past few years.

Bo figured he had laid low to once again exert his power over the town of Salem. For whatever reason, the deal he had made with Sami was being reneged on. If the deal had ever had any real meaning to him anyway. To Bo, the book she had written was just a betrayal of her own family to serve Stefanos ends. It would not be the first time that Stefano had used someone to wreak his havoc for him. Now the end result could be seen. His mother, Caroline was dead, his Pop, Sean was missing and maybe even dead. Sami and the kids also missing. For what? Because they were of Brady stock!

Having been used for years by Stefano, John also knew Stefano would have his own motive for staying hidden. John was not of Bo's mindset. Too much time had gone by for Stefano to use this as some kind of revenge on the Bradys. If that was the case, Sean would have been found dead along with Caroline. Why not Sami dead as well since she was the daughter of his hated enemy Roman Brady. No, Stefano had seen that these people had been saved for some other reason. Not only that, but he must have known that EJ would come for them That was the kind of man he was. John admired that in EJ, but he hated what EJ was willing to do to follow the will and testament of a man who had done so much harm in the world, to so many people John loved.

Harris was a man on one mission only. His son had been taken from the safe confines of his own crib, by one who had been trusted to care for him. There was no reason good enough in his mind to want anything but to kill whoever was responsible. Promising Chandler that he would get Liam back or die trying had been all he would say to her. Her tears had not moved him except to harden his resolve as to what he had to do.

As EJ stacked piles of provisions on the boat, he too had his own thoughts of why Stefano had acted in this manner. He had often suspected that Stefano might have just had himself hooked up to the Phoenix machine and retreated to a world where he no longer had to make decisions or interfere with the day to day operations of his empire. His island had always been a place he felt safe, and in some ways even loved by its inhabitants that he provided a livelihood for. The ring on EJ's finger was a promise he had made to the man, now did Stefano think that EJ had betrayed his trust? Or was it in the fact that the council had been allowed to think for itself? EJ was certain, Stefano wanted something done about the council, and this was his way of brutally seeing that EJ got the message.

Jumping over to the dock, Bo reached out for a hug from Hope. Julianna was standing, her hand held by her big brother Zach, now dressed in his baseball uniform. He looked up at his dad, before asking, "You coming to the game today, Pop?"

Hope looked at Bo, giving him a "you better say yes to that" look, and Bo ruffled the carrot topped boy on the head.

"Of course I am, and I expect you to hit one out of the park for me, cause it will be awhile before I can see another game. This time out, I will be gone for a couple of weeks, but we plan on a pretty big catch!"

Knowing it was no good to try and talk him out of this, all Hope had said to him was "You be careful Brady! Bring them back! I love you, and I love you for doing this. Your dad would be so proud..I am so proud of you. We need them all back home. Salem needs them all back home!"

EJ had walked up behind them and had overheard what Hope had said. He smiled a welcome at her, she had always been someone he admired.

"We are not going to fail, Hope, everyone is going to come home with us!" EJ said, as he expertly tied off a load, and secured it to the deck of the boat.

Bo had been surprised at the talent EJ had, not expecting a city boy to be so sure of himself in the knots needed to tie off the boats supplies, and gear. He had gone over as soon as he saw EJ tie off something to inspect, and found he had done a perfect anchor bend knot, as good as any ever shown him by his own Pop.

EJ had seen Bo try and find fault with it, and walked over to whisper, "I was taught to sail by the man we are going to try and kill..probably as you were by your Pop. Stefano does have his good points Bo, I remember them."

Seeing the little exchange, John had sidled over to Harris, "I hope we can keep those two from trying to throw each other overboard before we get to Stefanos Island. This is gonna be a bumpy ride!"

Harris had just brought on the last of the nets, much of the food they would eat enroute was to be caught, and he wanted to make sure they were in good repair. To Johns comment, he nodded in agreement, knowing EJ was normally a reasonable sort, but Bo, a different matter altogether.

**Chapter XVII**

The first day out on the water was cold, a bit cloudy, and looking out over the horizon, Bo expected they would hit a storm within six hours. He was not concerned, the Fancy Face II was well equipped to handle it, he had been through a lot worse. He went below to give his assessment, while pouring another cup of coffee.

"Harris, you do make a mean cup of joe..they teach you that in hit mans school?"Bo was still in the mood to needle, but Harris was not taking his bait. Calmly, he poured out the dominoes from the box and just challenged Bo with his eyes.

"Up for a game?" so Bo sat down, across from EJ, next to John. "Nickel a point good enough for ya?" He began shuffling the tiles, and John got a score pad and pen.

"I've never played this before, how does it work?"EJ was looking, and as he saw each of the others take the seven tiles out, laying them upright so as to not be visible to the other players. Bo smiled, and gave EJ a quick lesson, thinking to himself, "dead money right there in chair number two!"

EJ was not an expert in dominoes, by any means. He was however blessed with a sharp eye, and a keen knack for numbers. After the first two hours, and the third page of the notebook he began tallying the scores.

"Looks like..John you owe me $2.45 cents, Harris, an even four bucks..Bo, wow! Twelve dollars! If this keeps up, I may just have the deed to this tub before we make the Bay of Biscay!

Scowling, Bo put the tiles back, and dug into his wallet. "Let's get one thing straight, Lord Wells..this is not a tub. The Fancy Face II is one of the finest vessels of its class in the world, she can do fifty knots into the wind without breaking a sweat. So don't be insulting her..this boat is our life for the next ten days!"

EJ immediately gave his apology. "I mean no disrespect, she is a beautiful vessel, and I am most honored to be serving aboard her."

"Damn straight you are, land lubber!" but Bo had a grin on his face as he said it. "Now, for all of you, we are heading into a storm now , we all have things to do. This storm may not be much, but then again.."he let his voice trail off, before he began assigning duties.

"Lord Wells, you and I will take care of the top deck, Harris, you and John take care of below decks." And he began with instructions that EJ noted, as he was the most familiar with the art of sailing. He would begin reefing the sails,, dropping the main and storing it below. He would be responsible for seeing that the engines were started when the time came. He would see the lash line secured, and any ring buoys as well in case the worst happened. As he looked out over at the ominous looking clouds gathering in a rolling and boiling cauldron of darkness, he came to respect the knowledge of Bo. They were going to need his expertise.

Bo next began barking orders to John and Harris. "Secure all the cupboards, pump out the bilges, check those hull fittings, top off the fuel tanks, check out the head, make sure the toilet is emptied out" this instruction was given at Harris who finally had enough.

"And just what will you be doing during all of this?"

"I will be making sure you all did everything I said, as I said, when I said. In addition, I will be making sure we stay on course, and don't get our asses capsized so you get a chance to live and get that son of yours back."

Everything was accomplished within an hour, and Bo went round to inspect how well it was done. Anything not to his satisfaction was pointed out, and the person responsible was made to redo the job. Mostly, it was fine, and Bo was beginning to have a bit of trust in his crew. John was a quick study, Harris was willing to do anything, and though it took a bit longer for him to finish due to unfamiliarity, he managed. And Lord Wells, this was a sailor, and he was earning Bo's grudging respect.

'I've set a course to take us as much to the outskirts of the storm as I could, but it seems to be gaining intensity, and covering more area. I want to tell you, most times the craft will take care of the crew, but it may not be so easy as I thought. The weather reports say it is going to hit right on top of us. Just do as I say, and we should ride it out just fine. Harris, jug up some hot coffee in those thermos bottles, we will be needing it. John, you stay down here, watch these coordinates for me, and if they go off this much, come up and let me know. EJ, you and I are gonna be top deck, so make sure you are well secured to the lash line, it's a long swim to England if you fall over!"

The rain came first, a light sprinkling that turned to a steady drizzle, then into sheets of water that coated their rain slicks into shiny wet slick pieces of vinyl. EJ walked along the side, making sure of each step as he went, for now the wind was starting up like a banshee howling, the waves alongside seeming to get taller as the boat moved slowly along. Engines were cut way back, and the boat was being allowed to just ride with the storm, not fighting it, but easing into it, letting the storm dictate the movement.

Bo looked about to see all was well, then he was going to suggest they both go below where it was at least warm and dry when he saw what he had forgot, and cursed his oversight. The roof dinghy was still upright, and needed to be face down so that no water weight would be gathered there from the rain and sea waves. He made his way to the ladder, and climbed, but his lash was too short. Forgetting his own order to EJ, he unshackled him self to reach the dinghy. The wave was strong, and hit him full face as it washed him directly over the side!

"Bo!!" EJ looked down as he saw Bo's bright yellow slicker bobbing in the sea, drifting out. EJ took the buoy ring, and tied the longest rope to himself he could find before diving in and swimming strongly towards Bo!

**Chapter XVIII**

Sullenly, the children sat huddled in one corner of the room, as security guards had entered unannounced. A man in a white jacket had taken Baby Liam, and placed him on a table, whipping out a stethoscope to listen to the baby's chest. He listened a bit, then merely nodded before saying all was well. When Sami had moved to pick the infant up again, she had been roughly pushed back into a chair, the business end of the weapon held by the guard pointed at her. Justin had rushed to her defense, but she had stayed him, assuring him she was alright.

Sean had looked about him after than, and saw the well concealed security cameras that had probably monitored every movement any of them had made since being confined here. The children could not be faulted with not knowing this, but as well as he and his sons understood the way Stefano had to live, he should have known.

The man using the electric wheel chair coming into the room seemed to have read his mind. "Slipping up in your old age my friend, time was you could have made an escape this way, we did it many times, right, old friend? Alas, times have changed, and my security people would never let me run an operation as slipshod as we were used to."

Sean glared at Stefano. He felt like a fool, and Stefano was enjoying making him feel that way. "I am not your old friend, and I will ask you not to refer to me that way again."

"I shall refer to you any way I please, I ask you to remember whose guest you are, and under whose sufferance you still live, Sean Brady!"

"You murdering son of a whore! Why have you done this? What of my wife, and all those others who were innocent in that Pub? You could have killed us all, what crazy plan for revenge was this about?" Sean was red faced and lunging, but was held back easily by two of the guards.

"You best just keep quiet, Mr. Brady, you do not look well at all..my Doctore says you have all the earmarks of a man about to have a heart attack..what is your present cholesterol level? Not good I would guess!"

Sensing that her grandfather was about to do something rash, Sami went to his side, and gently led him back to the childrens side of the room. "Please, Grandpa, calm down, I need you to be calm, so do the children..is your medicine in your pocket?" Sami reached in and got out one of the nitro pills Sean had been carrying in his pocket for the past couple of years, and slid one under his tongue.

Bart made to push the chair, but was waved away with an impatient hand. "Let me do some things for myself, after all, I am only up for an hour more..let me be!" and he used the controls on his chair to propel himself over to where the Doctore was examining the infant.

Kacie had an instinctive fear of the man, and she wanted him no where near little Liam, so she ran to place herself in between them. This made Stefano chuckle. "You are a brave little one, and so very intelligent. I have heard what has happened with you, and believe me, if it had gone on much longer, I would have intervened. No little one should have suffered that long when there was a way to stop it." His yellowed hand reached out to smooth her curls, but she backed away in fear.

"Yes, I am to be feared. I am glad to see you know that. It will be useful to you someday, I am sure. Now, go sit down, I need to see that this baby is well. When I say so, you may come and look him over!" his tone gave no room for disobedience, and in her fear, Kacie did retreat.

Justin welcomed Kacie back with comforting arms. He embraced her protectively which was noticed and approved of by Stefano. "You take good care of your sisters, and your mother too I see. That is good. All the DiMera men protect the women of the family. It is our duty!"

Ace did not know what was happening, but something was happening here he had felt before. He was going to be left in a new place again, and try as he might to steel himself for it, he could feel the unwelcome tears starting to burn within his eyes. Blinking, he fought against them, and at last he brought himself under control. For a three year old to do that was an amazing thing, and Stefano observed it with a sense of wonder.

"Theo, my actual grandson...how have you been my child? It has been very hard on me not being a part of your life, but Celeste thought it best. I have always seen to your welfare though, I want you to know that." Stefano addressed Theo, smiling, but understanding why Theo hung back and shot him dirty looks. His father had always hated the fact that Theo was part DiMera and had told him nothing good about that side of the family.

Finally, Stefano looked upon Sami, and gave her his warmest smile of all. "You, just look at you my dear! Married, a beautiful family, wonderful home, great career..do you ever just want to thank me for all of that? Heh heh, no, I thought not. I am responsible for it you know, I was the one who gave you the book idea that has brought you the most fame and fortune..I was the one who sent EJ to Salem to get involved with you..who knew he would make the mistake of actually falling in love..but then I understand, I loved your mother as much."

Sami could bear no more, "We had a deal! I kept my end of the bargain, so why did you do that to my Grandparents Pub? Why are people dead because of you? We should all be in Salem, right now! Instead you have us prisoner here..why..give me an answer please!"

"First of all, I did nothing. People are dead because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. As for Salem, yes, I think most of you can go on back to Salem. Sami, you even get to choose who goes back tomorrow! How about that?"

"What do you mean..I choose?"

"I have to make sure my legacy survives. EJ has been careless. As of now, the baby stays with me, and one more of the children. This is a heir and a spare situation. You, Samantha get the honor of choosing which one stays with me! Sort of a Sophie's choice..The baby, and one other. I suppose Theo is the logical choice, but again, sleep on it, I expect an answer in the morning."

Stefano then turned to Sean, "You should be glad we stopped you Sean, none of those boats in the harbor is sea worthy, you would have sunk to the bottom as soon as you left the bay."

With that, the wheelchair was turned and heading to the door. The doctore picked up the infant Liam and left. Sami was still dumbfounded but finally found her voice to say, "You can't make me do this...I won't."

Stefano only paused to say "You will." As the door closed behind him.

The tear he had been fighting rolled down Ace's cheek.

**Chapter XIX**

Sami tucked in Jessica next to Kacie. If she could not persuade Stefano to give up this evil plan, she knew she could not choose one of her daughters. Kacie was still going to need medical attention to act in case she ever rejected the bone marrow Justin had given her. Jessica, no, never. That would break EJ's heart, it was impossible to even think of leaving her..

Moving on to where Justin was lying with Theo, she bent to kiss him, then looked into a pair of brown eyes, heavily lashed, with that same endearing way of blinking that EJ had. She knew she could never leave him to be raised God knew how by a man who was so blinded by power, he forgot how to keep his humanity intact. Justin reached to hold onto her neck, and whispered "Mom, just let me stay. I will find a way to get loose, I promise!"

Theo was awake, and she knew what he was thinking. "I am a DiMera all the way..why not leave me? I am not even one of her kids. Yes, she will leave me, I know it, I see it in her eyes."

He did see that in her eyes, that is what she would probably have chosen, except her grandfather began to choke and gasp for breath again. She ran to him, and pulled out a nitro pill, placed it under his tongue, while giving him small sips of water. She knew Theo was older, and he would be able to help. Her decision then was made.

Ace was already blinking his eyes, trying to stay awake when she lay down next to him. His small body stiffened at her nearness. She ignored it, and put her arms about him anyway, pulling him against her warmth. He said nothing, just barely let himself lean into her, softening a bit, and deciding for this one night, he would pretend. She was his mother, she loved him as she did all the others. She was not going to leave him. This was a pretend..he was good at pretend. His eyes closed, and he had happy dreams.

Sami lay awake, holding him, finally, her own exhaustion overtaking her, with dreams of her own starting to invade her mind. Her fear of the future began to unfold within her subconscious.

...EJ was no longer with her, for he had not understood why she had left their son. The sacrifice she had made to save the others had sickened him, and he had hated her for it! He had left, and taken control of the other children, and she had been left to live a lonely existence, once again hated by all who knew her!

In her dreams an angry embittered man came home to taunt her with what he had grown up to be.

So, you are my Mother, I remember you. You left me behind so the others could live happily ever after! Thank you, for it was what Stefano wished for. I am the one he has always wanted to rule!

"I am the one Stefano has chosen to rule! And that means your precious Justin must now step aside! "

"What about Liam, what happened to him?"

"Mommy dearest...please..don't you realize there can be only one heir to the throne? Liam met with an unfortunate accident, most untimely!"

The dream continued, and Sami saw so many evil things in store for her son. Fighting to wakefulness, she was damp with sweat. Pulling a robe about her, she ran into the hallway trying to make it to the elevator doors, but the security detail was just outside her door, and she had no where to turn.

A buzzer went off in the guards phone, after a seconds conversation in Italian, she found herself being led roughly down the hall towards the elevator entrance. He pushed her into it, then the doors shut and she found herself going upwards, stopping after 3 flights, and the door opening up into a room that was for all intents and purposes a hospital facility. There, hooked up to the familiar sight of a Phoenix machine, lay Stefano, next to him, his sentinel, Bart.

"Come on in Little Missy, ole Bart is here, and nothing is happening to you. I swear, this has been a trial for you, I know, but believe you me, ole Steffie just wanted to make sure the family stays alive..so much badness in the world ya know.."

Ignoring him, she went to Stefanos side, "You bastard! Wake up, wake up now! I want to talk to you this instant!"

Bart reached to tune in the frequency needed to bring Stefano up, and in a matter of seconds Stefano was looking about in a mild state of confusion.

"You said to get you up if Sami was ready to talk Boss. And lookee here, just like you said, she is right here..yesiree..Boss, you know her like the backa ur hand, I don't know how you do it, but it is amazing Boss..just amaz.."Bart stopped when he caught the look on the face of Boss.

"Shut up, you buffoon! Bring her a chair! This may take awhile!" His order was instantly obeyed, and Bart took Sami's arm to sit her next to the bedside.

"You have made your choice, good girl, always best to just make a decision, then do not second guess yourself..instinct is a God given talent for most of us". He reached to pat her hand but she pulled away in disgust.

"Ace, I am giving you Ace.". Sami said, with a catch in her voice, but she was not giving in to tears to which Stefano smiled with admiration.

"Excellent choice, he is the one I would have said too! You and I both know he is the one who will survive the best!"

"There is only one thing you must do for me though. I remain with him, let the others go back to their father, they will be fine. But Ace will need me, so please, let me stay with him. I promise I will not try to escape..I just want to be with him, I want him to know his mother". Begging was not in her nature, but Sami was close to it now.

"Hmm..well, it was not what I was thinking you would do, but this may have advantages..yes..I think we can work something out..Welcome to the family Samantha!" and his laugh rang out in an tone that sent ominous chills down her spine!

**Chapter XX**

Bo felt the waves pulling him out, and he fought against it, but his strokes against the force were weakening with each second. The cold was hitting him, and his mind began to close down to shield him from the shock of what was happening. He could see the face of Hope, smiling at him in a distant place, and all he wanted was to be there with her. He was so close to her now, almost within touching distance, and his hand reached out to stroke her face. Then he was snatched away from her, and he was pulled farther and farther away, until he knew he would not be able to reach her, and he turned to fight the force stopping him.

The first ineffectual slap at his face had only annoyed EJ, but he held on to Bo, and began the arduous swim back to the boat. The second one made him angry, since it was hard enough swimming against these waves as high as a one story building, so he swung his fist directly into Bo's face, feeling a bit of satisfaction at the slight crunch sound it made, but even more relief as he felt him slump, making the task of swimming with him easier. He managed to get the buoy over Bo's head and shoulder, which made him more buoyant and easier to tow. It seemed like an eternity, but the reality was John was pulling them up over the side with the help of Harris within an couple of minutes. EJ was exhausted, and Harris carried him in a firemans hold down to the galley, with John following with Bo.

First, they stripped the wet clothing off of them, wrapping them both up in woolen blankets. Bo had shaken off the effect of the blow EJ had landed on him, but now his hand was reaching up to inspect the area that had taken the hit.

"You basthard" the voice came out in a slight lisp! "You busthed my fuking nothe!"

John came over to take a look ,"Yeah partner, that is broke alright!"

Bo was not normally vain, but this was different. He wanted to see, and he staggered against the ships motion to the head and the shaving mirror. His nose was now a shade of purple tinged with the blood that had spurt out. It had a definite tilt to the left up at the bridge, and the effect was most pirate like. He came out of the head, holding a wet cloth to his nose, glaring at EJ.

"I had to do it Bo, for Gods sake you were trying to swim away from me, and I had no intention of letting you drown, and less intention of drownng with you, now come on, it really doesn't look too bad..Harris, what do you think, can you do anything?'

To Harris, a victim of a broken nose several times over, Bo was being a baby. Hell, this little adjustment was nothing. He probed a moment, enjoying it as Bo winced, after all, Bo had been on his case from the moment he had set foot in Salem, much less what he had taken while serving as his crew! Placing his two thumbs firmly on each side of the nose bridge, he had given a whoosh sound, then pressed to the right side of Bo's nose, stopping once he heard the slight crackle he knew meant the cartiliage had realigned, which would straighten the nose out. It would mean his whole face would carry a bruise of several shades, but the nose would be right as rain within days.

Bo suppressed his yelp of pain, refusing to contribute to Harris's obvious delight in the whole situation.

John fought his own reaction, and he almost succeeded until EJ had to say something, "I really think you should have left it leaning left, Harris, his face seemed so much more in balance that way..what do you think John?"

"You read my mind partner!" and the laughing started, from all four of them.

"Ok, ok, thanks EJ, thanks Harris, and as for you John, thanks a lot for hauling us up..now get this clear..I am still the captain, and there aint gonna be any group hugs for us..are we clear on that?"

Subsiding, the storm gave way to more gentle waves, and Bo righted the course once again. Surprisingly, the storm had actually sped up their journey a bit. After filing the plans again with all coast guards in the area they continued. Bo estimated the would arrive in Southhampton Port in four days.

After that, they would get over the Bay of Biscay, around the cape, on to the Mediterranean and Stefanos island near La Palma. The small fishing boat they were going to transfer to would meet them in La Palma. Getting into Stefanos island harbor would not be easy, but in the guise of a fishermans craft, it just might work. If they were turned back, they planned an assault by going in underwater from further out. EJ was very familiar with the island, He had spent a great deal of his childhood on holiday there, and it was while there that Stefano had decided upon him to rule. Now it seemed that Stefano may have had a change of heart. To EJ that was not important anymore, his family was important, and if Stefano wanted to mess with that, EJ would kill him soon as look at him.

John lay awake, he did not look forward to what was coming. If Stefano wanted to fight, he would stand and do so, but more likely Stefano knew exactly what was coming, and one way or the other was prepared. He pictured Marlena in his mind, she had railed against him coming on this mission, even his references to her grandchildren had not kept her from begging him to let EJ handle it by himself. It had been hard not to listen to her, but he knew in the long run, she would never forgive herself if another bad thing came from the evil of Stefano DiMera, and he had been able to help stop it.

The dream Harris was having was causing him to toss and turn, but no one noticed as they were all in their own reveries. Harris was carrying a wrapped up bundle towards his wife, and she was running out to him, her own arms outstretched. As he got closer and closer to her, the bundle got lighter and lighter, until he reached her, and she unwrapped the blue blanket to find..nothing..Liam was not there, only the small wooly lamb that Sami had given him. It seemed to him a sign though, a sign from Sami that she was looking out for him, and with that thought, Harris passed into a more peaceful sleep.

His arms closed around the pillow he had brought with him, and EJ inhaled the scent Samantha had left there on it. Her shampoo, and the scent of the moisturizers used on her skin lingered there, making him breathe deeply. He pictured her, how it felt to caress her softness, and run his fingers through her hair, while he kissed the sweetness of the top of her head. He shook it off, he knew he had to. Distractions during the mission would not help get her or his children back. Instead of thinking of her, he began to remember every detail of what he knew about the island, and how best to gain entrance to the fortress that the house really was.

Only Bo slept undisturbed. His faith now was with the Fancy Face II, and he believed in her with all his heart. After all, he had named her for the finest woman he had ever known, and she had never let him down yet.

**Chapter XXI**

Stefano had listened to Samantha, and how she wanted for this all to happen for an hour, not agreeing to everything she wanted, but for the most part, he let her have her way.

"I want time with them alone, I have to explain what is happening, and I have to have a way to let them know I am alright from time to time..can that be arranged?"

"Time with them is allowed. The other..no! This world is a hard enough place to hide in my dear, for me to allow you contact with them is only an invitation for your loving husband to come and make trouble. He is going to be difficult enough to deal with as it is." His voice was not harsh, but it had a note of finality in it that made Sami decide on a different tack.

"Ok, then just make sure that I can see that they are well, and happy, can you do that for me?"

"Done!" Stefano smiled, as he realized what she thought would reassure her could possibly also torment her, but he would cross that bridge as he came to it. Once again, this was all a means to an end for him, and though he was happy to be able to have a semblance of a family near him during this trying period of his life, it was rather tiresome to have to set things up again he had thought were cemented for life.

For the most part EJ had done well, but this latest lapse was deadly serious. His approval rating from the last council meeting was lower than President Bush'es and in order to reassert control over them, much blood was going to be shed. Would EJ still be up to it? Or had family life and the rigors of trying to make a life and a business that would not be held up to a light of day and found wanting by the so called pillars of Salem have been his undoing? Getting back Samantha with the two other children would depend on him once again proving himself to Stefano.

"But my dear, do you remember what happened with your lovely mother while she was once a guest with me? She also wanted to have reassurance that all was well with many of you in Salem, and she saw John, John making love with Kate..did she tell you? So how would it make you feel to see EJ moving on? Another woman? Your sister perhaps? Would you be able to live with that?"

The dagger he pointed at her heart did leave a mark. "EJ would never be with Carrie, he may move on, but not with Carrie. You are sick to even suggest such a thing."The doubt rose up in her mind, but was quashed as quickly as she could while covering her reaction to it.

He read her quickly though, that was a DiMera trait. They always read a face, for weakness, any sign of vulnerability. She was good though, all her years of lying, and deceit had served her well. Not many could recover like Sami could. Her mother also had the same ability he remembered. She had been a woman who could deceive him, while most could not.

"Samantha, you never know what a man will do when his bed gets cold and lonely..and after all EJ is just a man. He has the same weaknesses of the flesh we all do, or at least that I used to..aah well, one must give up the things of youth sometime, mustn't we?'

"Boss, I told you, that new medicine might work for you!" Bart tried to be helpful, but was silenced by Stefanos look of disgust.

"Do not speak this way in front of the mother of my Grandchildren..and Sami, I think of all of the children as my grandchildren,,I want you to know they are all equals in my sight! No matter what Tony may have thought."

Samantha thought back to another time. When EJ had first brought her to this island. Stefano had tried to weaken her faith in EJ that time too. It had not worked then, and now after the years they had been together, all the wonderful times, the tragic times, and the day to day existence of a marriage and raising of children, she was not about to allow it to work this time either. However, it might suit her to let Stefano think he had weakened her by using this tactic. Thinking her defeated would make it easier for her to probe for his weaknesses also. Of course he had them, he had just mentioned one after all, her mother!

"It is late, can I please go back to the nursery, I should like to spend as much time with them as possible before they are gone."

"Of course, and you know what..I just wish any of my wives or mistresses had received half the maternal instinct you have been blessed with..it brings a tear to my eye..really it does my dear.." but his smile was one that did not convey a person who could cry over anything. He was one who had lost that ability decades ago, and Sami knew why.

Escorted back to the nursery, Sami began to think about all she must remember to say to her children before they would be taken from her. How she wished she had been able to give them a life free from any of this, but their father was who he was, and when it came down to it, she would not have changed anything about him. His business was not the same as when Stefano had been running things. EJ was a person who wanted good for the world, but had to work in an environment of evil that had been created by Stefano. Yes, he could have led the revolution immediately, which is what she advocated, but so much of the world was ran by entrenched business interests that found change to be a frightening prospect. .

EJ and his crusade for cures to Global Warming, and alternative renewable energy sources had made him enemies in the world who had influence with the council. His pursuit of justice in the African countries plagued by genocide and scourged by Aids had been seen as a distraction from the work of increasing the empire.

Now she was seeing what EJ's own impatience had created. Stefano was now fearing something he felt he had lost control of. Sami was beginning to believe Stefano had not meant to harm them, for if he did, he would have already done so. In his own strange way, he felt he was protecting them, or at least making sure the legacy would continue. That he was willing for most of them to return to their lives in Salem did reveal something about his intentions.

The children did not awaken as she came back into the room, but Sean did. She went to him to see if he was needing anymore of his medicine. He seemed tired, and his skin had a tone she did not like at all.

"Sami, me girl, I want you to ask Stefano to let me stay here with Theo..I promise you I will take good care of him..and he is the oldest. You know that Abe will come and take care of him..Roman will help..Sami..let me stay".

"Oh Granpa, you don't remember, Dad is gone..so no..you have to go with the kids to watch out for them, I am staying behind, with Ace..he will need me, and the others will have their Daddy to take care of them, he will take care of them always! Don't worry, when the time is right, he will be coming for me and Ace...he has never let me down yet, he never will. I'm gonna be fine and so are you..get some rest now!: she leaned to kiss his beloved and wrinkled forehead. He seemed so very old and frail, this man who had always seemed a pillar of strength to her. As he drifted off to sleep, he murmured the name "Caroline.: then a few seconds later, he was murmuring "Eleni" the name that had been the start of all this pain.

**Chapter XXII**

John had taken over the top deck watch for awhile, when EJ came up the steps to sit by him as he gazed up at the stars. They had a companionable silence for a bit when John finally brought up the subject of Marlena.

"You know she is so very sorry and guilty for what she did, there is just something between her and Sami that cannot be breached somehow. I hope you know how much she suffered when she thought Sami and the kids had perished."

"Yes, I suppose so. She did have a lot to be guilty about", EJ was still not in a forgiving mood about his mother in law, so much had happened, and now was not the time for him to allow her to occupy space in his head rent free.

"Marlena spent a lot of time away from her kids, except for Belle, and most of it was not her fault, it was this insane vendetta Stefano had, and his penchant for making the Brady family pay for what their father did".John continued to make the case for his wife.

"That score was settled..Samantha paid the price.All your wife had to do was decide that Samantha was worthy of her love, and she has never been able to do that unconditionally. If she had, you might have seen a different side of her. The simple fact is, Belle comes first, then Carrie, then Eric and Samantha trailing along. I understand, she was gone during the time a mother normally bonds with her children, and it must have been hard dealing with a headstrong teenager who was bound an determined to reunite her own parents. I went through a lot of that with Will..before.."EJ became quiet as he remembered the boy who had left such a void in Samantha's life.

"I tried with Sami, I honestly did. She just held on to her bitterness for so long, it almost consumed her until you came into her life. I can despise you for working in the DiMera organization, but I know you changed her"

"You are so wrong about that John, I never changed her at all. Samantha is just as capable of being devious as she always was. You should ask Carrie about that. When she wants something she still will claw her way through until she gets it. I love that about her. She was always just this person that I love, but I adored the good and the bad in her. It fascinated me, excited me, and challenged me.

She is not her mother, when she is hurt, she reacts, she does not analyze it. That is how she loves, she gives in to it, and where ever it takes her she floats along in the same current. It is just a lot of the time, she seemed to be swimming upstream. Austin would have never made her happy, that was always obvious to me. Lucas, well, he might have had the slightest chance if he had ever decided to accept who and what she was, and believe in her. Then again, he would have had Kate to overcome. He could never do that, so he lost, I won. You know Samantha was genuinely happy that he seemed to have finally found what he needed. She is going to be sad when she hears he is gone.

Whatever the reason was that Marlena chose you, the same dynamic was in Samantha..she felt it, and she gave in to it..for that I am forever grateful" at that, EJ went silent, and accepted the flask of whiskey John handed over to him to ward off the chill.

"Damn, that is horrible, what is that stuff?"

"I believe it came out of a bottle called "Generic Whiskey" in Bo's liquor cabinet"

"Here, give it to me", and EJ poured it over the side to the sea. "I apologize to you, denizens of the deep, but I must refill this with something that won't rot our insides!"

EJ went down, and opened his valise, getting out a small bottle of Crown Royal, and refilling the flask, then going back up to John and offering him something that John sipped, then prounounced "Smooth!"

The time had come for them to get around to other business, as EJ did not seem inclined to unveil himself any further, and John felt the same.

"Why did Stefano take them from you EJ? I think it is time you lay your cards all out on the table".

"I let him down."

'Ok, let me drag it out of you then..How did you let him down? When did you let him down? Why did you let him down?'

Taking a long swig from the flask, EJ first gave the wheel a slight adjustment, as he felt the wind picking up just slightly.

"I did not protect what he holds most dear, the family legacy, I let someone get to them, I let my guard down. As to when, it started when I tried to end run the council. I knew they wanted me to kill off Samantha to prove my loyalty to the code. I was going to trick them, they figured it out, and sucker punched me. I should have seen it coming and prevented it. Stephano saw it, that is why he has them all now. He always was smarter than me. The why of it, that is a long question, but it is because I wanted a different life for my kids."

I have everything I could want, but I want also a world that provides a future for my children, and everyone elses too. I invested a lot of the council profits in things they saw no payoff in. They were right about there being no immediate payoff, the payoff would come with a different world. Sounds rather idealistic of me, especially knowing what you know about the DiMera World, doesn't it?"

"Well, here's to ideas partner", and John lifted the flask in toast.

**Chapter XXIII**

Sami went round to each of the sleeping children. Gently shaking each one awake, she took them to the table in the corner of the room. Only Ace was left to sleep, he did not need to hear this, her goodbye to the others. Theo sat, and sipped at the hot chocolate the duennas had brought in for them. Justin stood by her side, he was shivering, not in cold but in a fear that was gripping him. Jessica was still rubbing the sleep from her eyes, making Sami smile, she had always been like her, reluctant to leave a warm bed for any reason. She pulled Kacie up onto her lap, and the child turned her head into her mothers warm bosom, putting her small arms around her to snuggle into the warmth she offered.

Sean came over, and accepted the cup of coffee the duennas offered. Sami had told him he would be leaving with the kids this morning, and he had accepted what she had insisted on.

"I don't know why you don't just go, and leave me here Sami, I can take care of Acie boy, he's a fine 'un.." but the voice trying to sound so brave also sounded weak, as though he had aged years within the weeks since the explosion at the pub.

"You have to get back to Grandma, you know she is worried sick about you!"

At that, Sean looked out over the bay, he had been dreaming ever since they got here to this accursed island. Just as he had long ago let Eleni down, he knew now in his heart he had also failed Caroline. He was feeling her presence, but not in a here and now sort of way. He did not voice his knowledge to Sami, she had enough to burden herself with now, but he knew he would not be seeing Caroline again, at least not in this world.

When Justin saw that Sami had left Ace sleeping, the truth of what was happening hit him. "Mom, no, you cannot leave him here! Let me stay, let me stay! I'm the oldest!"

"I know you are baby, and that is why you must go with Papa Sean, you have to help him, you and Theo, watch over your sisters for me, and Ace and I will be along soon..I promise..I promise you..I won't be gone long, and when I come home, Ace will be with me," she lied as well as she ever had to them, proud that her skill at it once again came in handy.

"Mommy..you must come with us..Daddy will be sad if you don't come" Kacie was doing her best to persuade her mother to abandon this idea as well.

Jessica, though, with her own little maternal instincts as strong as her mothers understood. She looked over at her younger brother, his curly blonde head so like her own at that age, and knew there would be no way to make Mom leave him behind by himself..and there was Liam to consider too. Jessica reached up to rub the still reddened and bumpy area of her mothers cheek and could never remember seeing her mother so beautiful.

"Daddy is going to come and get all of you, and Uncle Harris. They will!" Jessica said it fiercely, knowing in her heart it was true, and there would never be any doubt!

'I know baby, I know." Placing her hand around her oldest daughter's neck, Sami pulled her into an embrace, and whispered to her, "take the envelope from my robe pocket, make sure your daddy gets it..promise me that Jess".

Jessica looked to make sure she was not observed, and took the envelope, stuffing it down her pajama bottoms.

When all were ready, Sami gathered them up, and together they walked down to the boat docks. Ace was left, still asleep. Sami smiled down at him, for in his sleep he reverted to placing his thumb into his mouth, not sucking, just hanging on to it for security. Rearranging the covers he had kicked off back over him, she left him with the one duenna while she walked down with the others to say goodbye.

Bart was there, along with a few of the security detail. A small craft, designed for fishing along the coastal waters was moored, and the engine was running smoothly. It was painted a cheerful yellow and white, with the name on the side being the Eleni. Sean saw, and looked at Bart with a sorrowful look in his eyes. Bart shrugged, and tossed Sean the rope to lower the gang plank down with. Sean looked at the balcony overlooking the bay, seeing his families nemesis and his one time friend sitting in his wheelchair looking down. He lifted his arm weakly in a salute of farewell.

"You just need to follow these charts, after two hours out, you will have radio available, but it is a dead reckoning over to La Palma. Once there, someone will be there to pick you up, that is what the Boss said to tell ya..good luck, and God Speed. I promise ya, we will take good care of the little missy and the young ones..I love that little guy Ace, practically raised him from a baby you know..him and I like peas and carrots!"

"Please shut up, the thought of leaving my grandchildren with you sickens me to death!"

"Well now you mention it, you don't look too good Sean..you got your medicine handy?"

"Just shut up, and help me get these kids on board!" red faced, at the exertion of just lowering the gang plank down, Sean was breathing heavily.

It was another fifteen minutes before all was readied, and Bart announced they all had to push off as the tide was receding quickly. Sami pushed Justin on, as he was still trying to convince her to let him stay.

"No! go, you and Theo need to help Grandpa Sean, he will need you..Daddy is going to come for me! Don't worry, but go now, I have to go back to Ace and Liam..please, don't make this any harder honey..I love you, when you see Daddy tell him I love him, and cannot wait to see him..he is going to be so happy to see you safe!"

Ace had rolled over, and saw that the mom was gone from his bed. Then he saw that all the others were gone too. It was no surprise, but he still ran to the window, looking down upon the bay, seeing the little yellow boat just clearing the rocks that marked the beginning of the quay. His tears rolled down his cheeks, but he gave no sound, as this was what he had expected. Then he heard the door open behind him, turning he saw Mom enter the room, her arms outstretched to him, as she was also crying, crying for him, for her, for her children that were now sailing away from them, and for the baby upstairs who was going to be needing her as well.

**Chapter XXIV**

It had been a long voyage crossing the Atlantic, and by the time they sailed into Southhampton Port, cleared customs and filed the papers required by the harbor master, the four sailors were ready for a night in a room, where they did not have to listen to each others sleep noises. EJ and John had usually kept the night shift, but the past three nights had been so smooth on the Atlantic, they had taken to sleeping on top deck in hammocks since the cacophony of sounds given off by Bo and Harris were bound to wake the dead. A night in a soft hotel bed, with running hot water sounded like heaven, as well as having a dinner that did not have to be cleaned and gutted before they ate it.

"Do you think we got into England without Stefano catching on?" John asked, after cutting into the steak he had been thinking about all day.

"If we got away with it, it is only because we sailed over..Stefano is not in the position he is in without being aware of all possibilities. He is bound to have been watching all the airlines, but I would say if we make it to La Palma without being pirated, we stand a good chance of surprising him."EJ waited for the wine to be poured by the sommelier before swirling it about, sniffing, then sipping a bit before gesturing for the man to fill his glass.

"Lord Wells, I gotta give it to ya, you seem to know your way around the best places! But since this is our night in port, don't you know any places where normal guys go hang out?"

"What do you have in mind? We do have to be ready to sail at 5 a.m. sharp..this is not a guys night out if you please." EJ was curt, while politely telling Bo to remember what they were here for.

"I get your point, but we are going to be another four days at sea now, and I might do us all some good to let our hair down a bit, if nothing else to get us relaxed for what is coming up!"

"Up the street, I recommend the Smugglers Pub. I used to go there when I came to visit Auto Union, they built a couple of my cars. It's close, we can walk.".EJ took the check, signed his card, and stood up to leave.

The Smugglers was a popular pub with the military crowd. Sailors on shore leave and wanting a time to themselves also attracted a certain class of young ladies. As soon as the four walked in they found themselves the center of some unwanted attention, both from the "working girls" and the sailors who soon lost the interest of the ladies.

"aye, andsome, I 'aven't seen the likes of anyone like you in here in awhile..care to buy a gal a drink?.."it was a young girl, no more than twenty who had decided that John was her type as she said, "I really go for the matoor gentlemens!" Her blouse was low cut, and the skirt she almost had on was a very tight denim. It was obvious all she wore beneath it was talcum powder.

"Nice place you brought us to EJ" was all John said, as he politely explained to the little red head that he was here with his own date, then he reached across to take Bo by the hand.

"Oye, that's 'ow it is eh? Damn shame,..I guess you all are double dating?" to assure her that was the case, Harris put his hand upon EJ's knee, giving him a loving smile.

When she left, EJ hissed, "move it, or lose it!" while Bo pulled his hand out from the grip of John.

Meanwhile the young lady had moved back over to the still ego crushed group of sailors. When EJ saw her speaking to them, and heard their laughter as she finished, he told the others.."this may not be the safest place to hang about, might want to finish these beers and find another pub."

Bo looked at Harris, in a challenge. "You think those seven are a even match for us?"

"Nope, they need a couple more is what I'm thinking."Harris was sipping slower, he wanted his beer to last. The past days on the boat, with no way of working out his inner aggressions had him wound up tighter than a coilspring. Bo was feeling the same way.

John looked at EJ, a pleading look on his face, but knowing he was stuck here and was bound to help his mates out, and when the seven came to stand around where they were sitting, he unconsciously began to clench and unclench his fist.

The stockiest of the seven was the first to speak.""'ow did you four manage to find your way to this eeestablishament"he dragged out the words, also making an attempt to sound sing song.

Then two of the others made a swish motion with their hands, knocking off three of the pints the four had been enjoying. This was what caused Harris to lose patience. All he had wanted was to sit and enjoy his beer, now he was going to enhance the experience as he stood and took the two by their ears, quickly knocking their heads together. Disappointed, he saw that had done the trick, as they slumped down, and he gently sat them in a nearby booth, propped against each other.

Now the odds were five to four, so EJ picked up Mr. Stocky, lifted him above his head, and twirled him until the man was begging to be put down. EJ obliged, and the man took the five foot drop flat on his back, but was well enough to climb out of harms way. EJ gave a grin of triumph, but let him go on his way.

With the evening up of things, the sailors decided they just wanted to have a peaceful drink themselves. "Hold up there fellows? You need to make a little restitution here, I think you owe us the pints your mates spilled over, and one for an apology for disturbing us.." John was figuring it out on his PDA, and handed over the total he wanted.

"Good, I think fifteen pounds is about right..night fellas".

**Chapter XXV**

They had all leaned out over the railing to keep their mother in sight for as long as they could, finally giving up when she became a small speck heading back up to the house. None of them gave in to tears, and Sean was so proud of them for that. Asking Theo to come forward to the wheel, he gave him a heading, and told him to just keep it in a straight line, and within an hour they should see the outline of Mallorca, and there would be La Palma where it was promised someone would be meeting them to help them contact EJ Wells.

Sean did not want to worry anyone, least of all the children, but he was growing weak, and the pains that had plagued him down his chest and arm were growing stronger. He knew it was a heart attack, he just hoped to keep the symptoms at bay long enough to get the children across the expanse of sea he needed to put between himself and Stefanos Island. He slumped heavily down on an area of railing, leaning on it so as not to give his condition up to the children. From here, he could rest, while still giving instruction to Theo.

The duennas had packed up a basket of food and drink for the group, and Jessica and Kacie busied themselves dividing it up, each of the plates getting a bit of the cheese, bread and fruit. Sean waved them off though, and Justin came to sit by him, alarmed at the funny bluish color that was forming around his Pops lips.

"Popa, do you have your medicine like Mom said?" at those words, Sean looked at his grandson, clutched at his chest and pitched forward to the deck!

"Popa!" Jessica ran to Justins side kneeling next to the old man. Theo left the wheel, and the dead reckoning that Sean had set it too spun around and the boat was off course. He tried so hard to remember what the training films his dad had brought home from the police academy said to do, and Theo began pressing down upon the chest, while breathing in, but he could not recall what the rhythm was supposed to be, as he did his best. Sean opened his eyes for the briefest of moments, ashamed that once again he had failed in his duty. He knew as long as Theo held the wheel to the line he had set it to, they should be fine, but if not, they might miss the lanes and lose themselves in this inland giant sea.

He had only two more seconds, and he fixed his gaze on the face of his beloved Caroline, and behind her, the face of another who had once loved him, and who also gave him a look of forgiveness..Eleni..

Kacie was coming to see what had happened, and she knew right away. In her time within the hospital, she had seen people die. This is how they looked. Death was always unwelcome, but it was accepted. Her brother and sister were now giving in to their fears, and she went to them, her little arms encircling each waist, wanting to give them what ever comfort she could. Even if it was just an offering of the banana she had saved for herself.

Theo all of a sudden remembered the wheel, and ran back to steer it on the same course.

He did not realize it, but they were already off the course set by Sean and Bart by several miles. Unless it was soon corrected, they would be missing the port by miles, and the fuel would not last much longer than La Palma. Without Sean, they also did not know how to operate the radio. None of these practical things were uppermost in their minds now, they were in shock with the witnessing of their great grandfathers death. With the shock came the realization that they were alone on a vast sea, with no food, and very little water. Justin and Jessica struggled to move Sean out of the sun to a shady area on the boat, but it proved to be impossible for them, and finding a piece of canvas, they had covered him with it, adding a rolled up ball of netting as a pillow for his head.

The sorrow from these losses was overwhelming now to all of them. Theo kept his grip on the wheel, then set the lock. He could only hope they found their way soon. Knowing it was his responsibility as the oldest, he called all of them over to stand over the body. "I think we need to say a prayer now, I know the Lords Prayer so I will say it , and if any of you have anything you want to say, go ahead." Theo began to recite the words given so long ago as a guide. When he finished he looked out over the sea, almost as a sign that God was listening and watching out for them, a pod of dolphins appeared at the helm of the boat! They stayed right beside the boat, at times even coming close enough to nudge it a bit to the right, which was acting as a way to get the little boat out of the area of the sea less traveled, and more into the active shipping lanes.

Kacie was fascinated, and she stared and pointed at the fishies! Her big brother explained to her that no, these were not fish, but mammals, just like Inky at home. Theo then sat down to tell them of many dolphin legends he had heard of where dolphins had rescued people at sea!

In the distance, Bo was looking out over the waters with his binoculars when he spied the boat, and for some reason felt it was odd to see that type of coastal hugging craft out in the open sea like this. He opened up several frequencies to try and hail the vessel, but there had been no answer. Also troubling was the fact that it was nearing sunset, and the boat had not yet turned on its running lights which was dangerous due to the fact it could be rammed out here by larger freight craft.

EJ came up top to see why Bo seemed to have changed course, and Bo pointed the craft out to him.

"We better see if they are alright, something does not seem right"

EJ took the binoculars and honed in on the craft, from where they were now, he could make out the name of the boat...his heart froze as he read ,"Eleni"!

**Chapter XXVI**

Bo made the adjustments and in no more than half an hour the Fancy Face II was bearing alongside the starboard side of the Eleni. They had called out ahoy, but it looked like it there was any crew aboard they were not answering for some reason. When he was close enough, he handed off the grappling hook to EJ, and the boat was hauled over, and placed on a tow cable. In the interest of caution, all the four boarded, guns out and ready to defend themselves.

This was a boat from Stefano's Island, there was no doubt, but as to what it was doing out here in these waters was a question. Then the figure under the canvas was spotted. Bo was standing over it, a feeling of dread overcoming him, but he knew someone was dead under the cloth. He peeled back the canvas, and gave a cry of anger and anguish it was hard to tell which emotion was stronger! John came to him, and bent to see if there was any hope for the old man, but the stiffness of the body was already in place. He looked as though someone had cared enough about him to make him as peaceful and comfortable as possible, the net rolled into a soft portion of pillow under his head, and different blankets tucked under him.

"Oh God, Pop! I swear, I will kill that bastard for doing this to you, and Mom! He deserves to die the most slow and painful death I can think of!" He now found himself feeling more alone than he ever had. To have to find this loving man who had raised him, accepted him always, dead, apparently all alone was the most devastating blow Bo had yet received!

"Hey partner, we need to get him some place for a decent burial, I will radio for a helicopter to come out and pick him up, you go on with him to La Palma, we will meet up with you there, we can't just leave him out on this boat.." John was kind spoken, but also aware the body had to be taken care of.

EJ and Harris were making their way quietly down to the lower deck of the boat, again, they had called out, but no answer came back. EJ stepped into the small sleeping area, seeing some disheveled bedding on a small bed, a few plates with some peels left on them, but the food all eaten. The blow to his head from the heavy object was totally unexpected, and he went down to his knees, holding onto the bed to keep from going down all the way, instinctively holding up one arm to ward off another blow!

"Got ya Pirate!" Theo was almost ready to hit him again, when Harris had grabbed onto the pan he had used, and picked up Theo off the ground, finding himself the recipient of some pretty stiff kicks and blows!

"Hey buddy..hold on..look, it's me Harris..what are you doing on this boat? Where are the others? Do you know? My son Liam, do you know of him? Harris was gently holding Theo in a tight hug, facing him, trying to get the boy to calm down, but he was so wound up, with both fright and shock it took several minutes before he realized who was holding on to him. Giving a cry of relief, Theo unashamedly cried like a baby, clutching onto Harris, as EJ also came to him, rubbing his shoulder in sympathy.

"Theo, are the others alright. Where are they? " EJ was rubbing the growing lump on the back of his head, but keeping his voice soft as he tried along with Harris to get Theo to tell them anything.

Through his tears, rubbing his eyes to clear them, the boy pointed at a small cupboard in the corner. EJ opened it, to find Justin crouched protectively over his sisters, a rusty butcher knife in his hand.

"Oh God, thank you! Thank you!" and EJ was scooping them out of the small space into his arms, crying in his joy, and taking their hugs and kisses on his face with gratitude.

"You came Daddy! We knew you would..now let's go get Mommy and Ace and Liam!" Jessica had always had faith in her father, but she could not help wondering what had taken him so very long!

EJ pulled each of them away from him as he looked them over. They had grown even in these weeks, and he wanted to inspect every inch of them with his eyes! Kacie was very tan, the pallor of the young cancer patient gone, and her little legs were muscled up nicely! Justin looked as if he needed a serious visit with a barber, and Jessica was just as beautiful as she had always been! He still could not stop looking at them in his joy to get them back, but finally he had to find the answers to the other questions.

"Where is your mother, and Ace..why aren't they with you?"

"The wheelchair man said Ace and Liam had to stay, and Mom would not leave them with him without her, Dad, I tried to get her to let me stay, but she said no Dad! I wanted to stay, so did Theo, but she made us go! I'm sorry Dad..I should have stayed there." Justin was crying as he admitted his guilt, but EJ only pulled him into a hug.

"No son, no, Mom needed you to take care of Jessica and Kacie..and you and Theo have done such a good job! How on earth were you able to get this boat out into the waters where you had a chance to be seen?"

"It was the dolphin fishies, Daddy..they pushed us!" Kacie was fighting her way into his arms so she could tell that story!

They brought the children on board, rubbed lotion on the sunburns they all had acquired, and gave them a hearty meal of soup and bread. None had eaten since the day before, the food packed by the duennas had not been meant to last past that one meal. There was also no water on board, so they were a hungry, thirsty and tired group of four little sea farers. Not wanting to make them relive too much, EJ decided they would wait until the group had been able to get a nights sleep before they would question them. Sean's body was wrapped, and moved inside on the smaller boat, and they decided they would tow it with them into La Palma.

Bo kept a watch and EJ came up to join him after the children had been tucked into the one bed, boys at the foot, girls at the head, so exhausted they had not even noticed the crowded conditions, just fell fast asleep.

EJ handed Bo the flask of whiskey, figuring he needed it. He had come to help them rescue his father, and instead was going to accompany his body home.

"Arcuturus, that star there, you see it?" Bo was pointing and asking EJ.

"Yes, I know it" EJ also pointed up to the brightest star.

"Pop taught me that, he taught me everything, I only wish I had killed that bastard so long ago so he couldn't keep on doing this to my family"

"Bo, Stefano did not do anything to your father, the children told us".

"What the hell do you mean? Of course he did! Pop's dead, that is what Stefano always wanted, wasn't it?"

"No, Bo, Stefano did not want Sean dead, Sean's body just finally gave out, Stefano was using Sean to bring the kids back to us..that is all".

"Humph..spoken like a DiMera..once a DiMera, always a DiMera.!"

"Bo, we need this ridiculousness to end now, I want my wife and my other son back! Sami is your niece, and she is responsible for Zach being back with you and Hope, and if you are honest with yourself, so is Stefano!"

**Chapter XXVII**

The transfer to the yacht moored off shore in deeper waters was accomplished swiftly. Sami gripped Aces little hand, while holding Liam in his carrier in the other. The deck hand steadied her as she made her way up the steps from the launch. It was huge, and even though she did not want to be, Sami was impressed with the size and opulence of the "Celeste". It was over three hundred feet long, with five decks . She had seen earlier Stefano being taken aboard, along with a great deal of medical equipment.

One of the crew came up to her, greeting her both in English and Italian, "Buona sera, signora, good evening", and led her to her quarters.

Well equipped playroom and nursery adjoined her stateroom, and she was soon laying the baby into a very comfortable crib. He gurgled up at her, charming her instantly, while he kicked his sturdy little legs, glad for the chance to finally stretch out after all the time in the carrier. Looking at how much he resembled Harris with his fair ruddy complexion and the shock of red fuzz on the top of his head made Sami feel so sad for his parents.

"They must miss you so much little guy", and Sami told herself no matter how long it took, she would find a way to get him back to Harris and Chandler. This cruel separation, now matter what the intent was evil, and the thought of either of these children being measured for some dubious crown made her ill. She had been very observant to check everything out that she could while being brought aboard. Counting crew, she had seen at least twenty, which made the odds slightly against her, but looking down at Ace, she figured he was almost like having another four people on her side. He was so brave, so valiant, she had more appreciation for how tough he was every minute.

"Mom, I'm hungry!" Ace was tugging at her skirt. It was the first time he had ever voiced any need to her at all. The mother's instinct in her rose up, as she looked about for the way to fill that need. The intercom button looked the most promising, so she pushed it, and was rewarded by a familiar voice.

"Hey little missy, how you and the kiddie winks doing? Need anything..I am at your service, your beck and call..night and day..you just let me know.."he droned on, until Sami shut him up.

"These kids and I need some food. What do we do about that?"

"Just go over to the television set, and enter the number two. There is a menu of the ships offering, pick out what you want, and it will be at your cabin within thirty minutes..neat huh? I love it when the boss goes to sea!"

Having gotten what she needed, Sami proceeded to order dinner for the three of them. The serving of macaroni and cheese was a favorite for Ace, but the green beans were usually something he had managed to avoid or pass on to Inky.

Tonight, though, he quietly chewed them, making no fuss, while watching her spoon the strained squash into Liams smacking lips.

'I miss Inky dog..can I have a dog?" Ace was looking at her expectantly, as if now that he had her more or less to himself, anything he wanted should be grantable.

"Ace, I think we better wait on a doggie, but I will see what I can do, maybe a kitty?"Sami was taking inventory of the room, seeing exactly where the security cameras were hidden. She did not want to be taken by surprise again. Stefano was not stupid, he knew she would try to get away, this was why she was surprised that he had let both children be with her.

"Bart..look at her..such a fine mother figure. No wonder EJ chose her to be the one!"Stefano looked on as Sami fed and entertained the children.

"Boss, you said it so long ago, she is a keeper..EJ is one lucky man!"

"But I am so disappointed in him, he should have done better..I expected more. Now I will have to make sure he does his duty if he wants him complete little family back. Now, make the arrangements for the plastic surgeon to come on board, we have to make a few changes to her appearance, that scar is so distracting..I must have that fixed quickly. Tell me, how do you think she would look as a red head?"

Bart looked at her, and agreed, "Yes, it would make her look more like the babies mother, Boss, you are a genius..no doubt about it, a genius!"

"Do you ever tire of hearing yourself babble on?" Stefano really wanted to know the answer to that question. It occurred to him all the times he had told Bart to shut up, the man never seemed to follow that command for a whole hour at a time.

"Boss, you know, that is a really good question..and I have given it a lot of thought, but as you know, I always seem to just get carried away when I am in the presence of your absolute genius..I wish I had the way of seeing a problem, and just thinking it from all angles, and coming up with so many solutions to it, I am in awe..Boss, just in awe..uh..what was your question again?"

"Oh good God, just shut up!"

"Ok Boss, you got it, shutting up right now, you will not hear one more word from these lips..not one more word, and if I do. I think you should just take me up top and..."his voice faded as he realized what he was about to suggest may have already been on the Boss's mind.

**Chapter XXVIII**

"Daddy, I want to come with you to bring Mom and Ace back, Harris, you come with us and bring Liam back", Justin was weighing into a bowl of Cheerios, he had forgotten how great they tasted.

"You know, I would love for you to come, but your Mom would want to know you were back in school. She would not be pleased to know I did not get all of you back to your normal routines." EJ was so proud of his oldest boy, actually all of the children had acted in ways that made all of them heroes as far as he was concerned. They had told him so much of what had happened on the island, he was now able to plan what his next move would be. Once again, he unfolded the letter that Jessica had made sure to smuggle out to him. He uncreased it, and inhaled the heady smell of Samanthas skin lotion. It was as familiar to him as the smell of sunlight, which it always reminded him of. The fact that she had it to use meant at least that Stefano was taking good care of her.

"My Darling Husband,

I want you to know I am well, Ace is well, and tell Chandler and Harris I am looking out for Liam, and he is safe and healthy. Please do not worry, but if it is awhile before we are together, please know I will love you more each day, nothing keeps you from my heart or my mind. I pray for you hourly, and hope God will end this nightmare soon. I should hate Stefano for this, but he has allowed me to stay with Ace, and he has provided medical care for me which has restored my eyesight to almost what it was. I hope when we are together again, you will not think I am horrid because of the scarring on my face. I am only telling you this so if the children say anything you will not worry.

It seems so strange to be writing you, and to not be able to look upon your face. The times we have been apart have always had to do with something related to a DiMera's evilness and this is no exception.When I come back to you, or you come after me, whichever comes first I want us to do something permanent about this!

We have four of the most wonderful children in the world, and I am giving you the care of Justin, Jessica and Kacie. I had to stay with Ace, and I know you understand why. What I want most is for you to get our children back to their normal routines, Nanny will understand, and help you to her utmost.

Stefano is still obsessed with protecting the family line, the man never changes, and he never dies. He will want to contact you soon, and council you, it would be best if you followed his council. I love you, you are my heart!"

The letter was signed Samantha. EJ knew she was sending him a message, and at once it hit him! She had always prided herself on correct spelling and grammar, and here she was using the word council, both incorrect in spelling and usage.

Folding the letter back up, he put it his pocket, and went up to the top deck to talk with Harris.

Harris was sitting, gazing out over the blue Mediterranean, it had been hard for him to let Chandler know Liam was not coming back with him. Sami's letter had not helped her at all, an her grief was threatening to make her unhinged. If she had only not gone out on that story that late night, Liam would be with her, sitting up in his high chair, spitting out his oatmeal!

"I figured out what Stefano is wanting, and I think if we do it, we get them back, but this is not going to be easy."

"You know I'm there, I cannot go back to Chandler and say I'm not bringin Liam home, I canna do that", Harris was slipping back into his Irish brogue. "So, Boss Man, what is this job..and when can I start?"

"The job is to kill off the non DiMeras members of council. Probably the most secured and protected body of men ever assembled."

"What about Phillip? I thought he was our man."

"Him? He's nothing, it's Victor propping him, but yes, him too when the time is appropriate."

Harris put his hands in front of him, turning them over, as if examining for the blood stains he knew should be there. The names of those he had killed over the years as a DiMera man numbered twenty, what was a few more to bother him. He only prayed his son would never know what he truly was.

"When do we start? And who is first?"

"We need to get the children back to Salem, Baseball practice starts for Justin and Theo next week".

EJ was nothing if not efficient, and the Mythic Jet was landing in Mallorca the next morning. Matthew was onboard, along with Tippin and Nanny to bring the children home.

"Daddy, we promise to be very good, we won't fight or give any bother to Nanny!"Jessica whispered, "you must bring Mom and Ace back..so don't worry about us ok?" She hugged her father, then gave him a teary kiss on his cheek.

Justin was trying to hold back his tears also, he was much too big to be crying, but it was too much for him, and he sobbed against his fathers shoulder.

"Take care of Kacie, she is your special charge, see she takes her vitamins and such?" EJ was trying to ease the separation they were going to face, and it was killing him too. He could be with them, but it would not bring their mother back, or his other son. Urging him up the steps to the plane where Nanny was already carrying Kacie inside.

Theo stood uncertain as to what to do, when he looked up and saw his mother calling to him! He flew up the steps to her waiting arms, not caring that he was too old to cry!

**Chapter XXIX**

The easiest way to control Sami was to use the children, and Stefano did. Any time she refused to comply, they were taken from her. She soon learned it was easiest on her, and the children to just listen, and then agree, as the alternative was to hear Ace screaming, and the baby crying as he reached out for her while they were taken out by the duenna.

"Sami, I need you to let the duenna take them for just a few minutes while the doctore takes a look at you. I promise, this will not be for long."

The surgeons hands tilted her face in several directions, and he brought out a marking pen to cross several planes on her face. Once he had finished, he stepped back and took several digital photos.

"That is nothing, I can fix that in one simple surgery, you are very lucky signora! And so beautiful, but I would like to do a couple of other things that will enhance you".

"No! I am who I am, no enhancements!" Sami looked warily at him.

"Sami, let the doctore finish his examination. Then maybe you and I can have a quiet dinner and talk together. We have much to discuss."

Sami knew that was not a request, but a command, and since she was learning to pick her battles, this was not one she felt worth fighting.

"Splendid!" he took her silence as her acquisience. "Doctore, you finish up here, Bart, arrange for the children to have dinner with their duenna. I would like you to bring her up to my quarters at seven, and send some appropriate dress up for her.".

"Here Ace, step up here and zip Mommy up." And Ace stepped up onto the bed to do the honors. When he finished, she turned to him, and kissed him in thanks. It had been a couple of weeks since coming aboard, Stefano did not moor anyplace long, he seemed to be trying to stay one step ahead of something. Sami could only hope it was EJ. She could not complain about their treatment, unless she got defiant and then his punishment of her was to take Ace and Liam until she agreed to what it was he wanted. Mostly, he wanted her to tell him things, about her life, her mother, her children. He never apologized for what he had done to her family, never offered any reasons, just enjoyed the conversations it seemed. Usually, it would last about forty five minutes, then he would be dozing off in the sun, and a nurse would come to take him down again.

"You look pretty Mama!" Ace was never effusive in praising her, and their relationship could be described as a work in progress, each moment a brick in the wall cementing their bond. He was so helpful with Liam, and between the two of them, the infant was learning the art of baby signage which delighted Ace. He made it a habit to reinforce and teach Liam at least one sign a day. Now he was showing Liam a sign for pretty, placing his cheeks on either side of his face to signify a sense of wonderment! Liam was imitating him, pointing to Sami, and gurgling his understanding.

"Ok lovies, I have to go for awhile, be nice for her, please Ace?" this was a plea for him to treat the duenna with respect, and he shrugged an ok. He would.

The table top was set with fine china, a bucket of chilled champagne, fresh flowers and candlelight. Seeing her trepidation, Stefano laughed aloud!

"My dear, don't look so worried, I just thought you should get accustomed to what you will soon be experiencing."

"What are you talking about, since I usually eat with the children, this is hardly practical." Sami wanted him to know she was amused, but wary.

The steward pulled out a chair, seating her across from Stefano. He looked at her approvingly, the simple print dress in a pattern of violiet colored tulips suited her, this Sami should always dress in simple lines. The woman he wanted her to become would dress much more flamboyantly. The folder next to him held the pictures the doctore had made up showing what the changes would do to her, and enhanced by the flaming red hair color, she would look nothing like her self. The doctore guaranteed it. He also would implant the device which would change the timbre of her voice, and the emerald green contact lenses would make her unrecognizable. Stefano now had to convince her to accept the assignment. It was the only chance to secure his lineage, and for her to return to her family. She would agree, or spend the rest of her life roaming around on this boat, and Liam and Ace would remain as well.

Ace was still awake when Mom came back in, he had been reading one of the books she helped him with each night. He saw her, and he felt renewed hatred for this bastardo man who scared her so much! He was not afraid of him at all, and someday when he was big, he would show him how much he did not fear him! His Mom was white faced, her breathing labored, and she reached out to hold onto him so tight, he finally had to wriggle out from her to breathe himself!

"Ace, he is going to take you both away from me, he is making me do something, and if I don't agree, he says I never see you again..Ace..I told him I would, but it is a bad thing, I have to do a very bad thing, and I have to leave you! Please understand, I have to do this, but I swear, I will get you back.!" Sami hugged him, but went to pull a calendar off the bureau. She took his hand, and with a pen she marked off ninety one days!

"This is how many days I will be gone, now, if Daddy comes and finds you and Liam, and I really believe he will..you must show him this, he must know I am coming back for you! Can you do this Ace?"

All Ace had heard was that she was going to leave him, until she pulled him in front of her, both hands on his shoulders as she looked directly into his eyes.

"I would never lie to you, Ace, never! I have lied many times in my life, and done many bad things, but I have always loved you, even when I did not know you! You have always been in my heart, from the moment you were born, no matter where you have been or who you have been with! I found you once, and I will find you again! They are here for me now Ace..please remember what I have said. I love you!"

Once again, the little boy watched as the center of his life was wrenched from his little universe. Liam began to cry, and he walked over to the crib, signing to Liam that it was okay, he would be the mom now.

Sami awoke from the surgery, and asked for the mirror. As the doctore had promised, the skin was already healed, her lips fuller, the cheeks slightly thinner. Her hair was a lustrous auburn, catching the highlights of the sun, set off stunningly by a pair of eyes that were a deep emerald green, with flecks of gold.

She had some mild bruising, but he was the most skilled surgeon in the world, and had worked on the most successful of stars and royalty. His job was to make you able to go back out into the world as quickly as possible. Her body had been resculpted, and the curvier figure she had once had, was sleeker, but still impressive.

"I do not look like myself, but I guess that was the idea"..

That was what really shocked her, her voice now sounded smoky, low and husky. Her hand flew to her throat, but doctore just smiled.

"It is an implant device, actually, you will sound as sexy as a siren, which is what Signor Stefano has asked for..a vixen, who makes men want her as soon as they set eyes on her..damn, I do good work!" his two fingers flew to his lips in a kiss of satisfaction at how well he had done, and what a good fee he had earned!

**Chapter XXX**

The famous Hotel De Paris overlooked a portion of the famous track on which the Monte Carlo Grand Prix was run. The Monte Carlo Casino in all its opulence was next door, the parking area was overrun with Lamborghinis, Rolls Royce, and for those who had yet to really make a mark in the world, Mercedes Benz. Miconderia was waiting in the bar, sipping a morning brandy and coffee while he awaited the arrival of EJ Wells. EJ walked in, and there were many who called out to him in recognition, as much of his younger days had been spent in this establishment while he was on the circuit. When EJ walked in with his henchman, Harris McMurty, Miconderia felt the cold wind of death blowing upon his neck. He knew he would be doing some fast talking if he were to escape the fate he knew he deserved.

Standing, then, he held out his hand in a gesture of respect. EJ did not take it, instead, he quickly took a seat and motioned for the waitress to take his order.

"Café Americano, deux, s'est vous plais!" his order was given in a imperial sort of way, without even bothering to look up at her, he just assumed she would get the order, get it correctly, and bring it to him as was his due as both a celebrity and well know customer. This was however the first day for her on the job, and since she had never really taken to her high school French classes, it took a moment to fully translate it in her mind.

This was her first test, and though her heart was beating in her chest loud enough she felt to be heard across the room, she knew she could not fail. Too many lives, including EJ and Harris's depended on how she fulfilled this task. When she brought the coffee back, she could not resist the tiniest brush of her hand against that of EJs. He felt the spark himself and looked up at her for the first time. She prayed he would not recognize her, as Stefano had said if that happened he would have no choice but to sail with Ace and Liam for the most remote island he had, to raise them as DiMeras in an isolated environment. Her mission was to do what EJ was doing, before he had a chance to do it! The timing of this mission had been crucial, as Stefano knew EJ was going to go to Miconderia first.

"You will run into EJ on this leg of your mission., You must do what he is trying to do first. I trust you in this Samantha, there has always been something in your make up that would enable you to do this. You are like a lioness with her cubs when it comes to your children..so you must make sure EJ does not know it is you! If you fail in this, I have no choice but to keep both Ace and Liam as the other members will suspect EJ is after them, and he must be made to look above suspicion. Otherwise, the world will never believe he has changed the face of the DiMera organization, it will always be associated with the face of evil, and while I rather enjoyed it, it is not what I would wish on my legacy!"

Now after being placed in the position of being able to complete the first leg of her mission, she felt her legs weaken as she felt the heat of EJ's eyes on her. She could not help but look back. Her red hair was tied back in a pony tail, the bangs done in a girlish way. Her makeup was a trifle overdone, but she kept her eyes downcast to avoid looking at him directly, she knew that would be too hard. For his part EJ was uneasy for some strange reason with this serving girl. Attractive in a trampy sort of way, something about her was so familiar. Finally he thought she may have been one of the racing groupies from his time on the circuit. She served them, then made her way back through the kitchen, and out the back employees entrance, to the Mercedes Benz SL she had been provided by Stefano. Next stop, a visit to the Lester family home, in the Cottswold of England!

It did not take three minutes, and Miconderia was fallen over, his heart stopped by the droplet she had put in his coffee. EJ and Harris had gotten there after he had ordered, and been served, so no suspicion would fall on them. Stefano had planned out this first council death to be simple and foolproof. Sami knew she should have felt badly, doing murder, but this was one of the men who was responsible for trying to kill her whole family!

The papers the next day carried the news of the well known online internet gambling kingpins death of natural causes. EJ and Harris left Monaco, with a suspicion a certain red haired waitress may have been hired by someone else to take him out, but it was not necessarily to do with the council. There could have been other enemies after Miconderia, gambling could be dangerous, time would tell. For now, they would have to make the meeting with Lester, he wanted to make a deal, that was always the way with your assassin, a deal.

Sherman Lester was a man who dealt in money, great amounts of money. If you were someone with a great deal of money, who needed it to be transferred for whatever reason in a way that was untraceable by any pain in the arse world agencies, he was your go to man. Sabrina O'Malley was a person who was interested in just such a service, and she had clearance from one of his most respected clients.

Stefano still had friends who knew of his shadow existence. One of them had arranged this meeting for Sabrina. She was there on behalf of her client, a wealthy Arab oil minister, who had co opted several billion dollars of his countries wealth and needed to make sure it was discreetly put in safe places. Lester always guaranteed a great return on investment, and had been highly recommended was what Sabrina mentioned to him in initial conversation.

Lester had greeted her warmly, taken her business cardf from her black leather gloved hand and placed it in a prominent place in his rolodex. When he looked across the desk at her, he was enthralled by her beauty, but the husky tone of her voice was enough to make him feel a sexual excitement he thought had been dead for many years! Just watching her carefully remove her gloves, placing them in her handbag was an exercise in sensuality. She wore her long red hair almost in a way reminiscent of Rita Hayworth, a woman he remembered well! Her eyes were a shade of green sparkling with flecks of gold, and her figure, though petite in stature was voluptuous. When she crossed her legs, the white skirt she was wearing

The poison that was on the business card took a few minutes to seep into his blood stream, and Sami looked at him with pity as he began to gasp for breath. It was a quick, and silent death, so she placed him leaning on his desk, using his arms to pillow his head. It would be difficult to leave the way she came in, so she chose the window route. Negotiating that was a bit difficult in the skirt, but the high heels were impossible, and as she swung her leg over the sill, one heel caught soundly on the frame, and busted off completely as she jumped the seven feet down to the lawn. By the time she made it back to her car, she was limping with the effort to run on the lopsided footwear. The road ahead was clear of traffic, save the one car she passed by as she made her way onto the B-14. Driving the left hand drive on opposite side of the road was something she had to think about, but she had not had time to change out cars since Monaco, and she was enjoying the Mercedes immensely. In fact, if it had not been for the fact the kids were the betting chips in this game, she would have to say this was just devishly fun, and she was going to enjoy writing about it!

Harris looked back at the Mercedes as it disappeared into the night. Pulling out the pictures of all the autos that had been in the lot at the Hotel De Paris, he did find one that was that make and model, and it also had been one not in the lot after Miconderia had died. It was not odd for a right hand auto to be in England, the Chunnel had made it quite ordinary, but in light of where they were, he was suspicious.

"EJ, I think maybe we should hang about, and see about that car, I just have a feeling."

"Sorry, Chap, we have to be on time for this meeting with Lester, or the whole thing may go to scrap!"

**Chapter XXXI**

"Have you got the next assignment ready? I believe I am ahead of schedule, and two weeks has gone by since I have heard anything? How are the children? May I speak with Ace?" Sami always asked the same question, and the answer was always the same.

"It would not be wise. I assure you, they are both well. Ace is looking after his "adopted" little brother quite well, he is tracking your progress on the calendar you left, and I am enjoying his company immensely. Just a clever child all around. He has learned to swim in the pool, and I think he is fishing today off one of the launches. Trust me Samantha, we are talking good care of them. You think about your job."

"Who is next? Can you at least tell me that? I am going stir crazy having to stay inside my room all the time!"

"You know why Samantha, right now, you are a very striking, but also very memorable looking female. While that plays into our hands for getting you close to the council members, it is also something that will make you stand out for any of those inconvenient eye witnesses. We do not want to make innocent people pay for your carelessness, now do we? As to who, and where, be patient. You will be contacted next week. Now hang up, and turn on the television, you may see some interesting news!"

The BBC news channel was airing a spot about the celebrated racer EJ Wells, and his recent rescuing of his children from unknown kidnappers. Sami rushed to turn up the volume on the set, and set down to look upon the faces of her children as they were setting in front of the cameras for the interview. EJ was holding Kacie, while Justin and Jessica stood in back. They were making the plea for the release of the three hostages still being held for ransom.

"Please let my mother and brother come home, and bring our cousin too!?" Jessica read the little handprinted card she had written, then sat back down shyly.

Sami was so proud of her, she was such a little diva actress! All of them played the part perfectly. This was also a way of letting her know they were safe. Then the news of her grandfather had been given. His heroic actions had been very responsible for the children making it to safety. By now Sami had learned of Carolines fate as well, so for her, the thought of Grandpa Sean reuniting in heaven with his Caroline removed some of the sting of his passing.

Tracing the faces of those she loved on the screen was almost like touching them, she felt she could feel their warmth, and she tried to convey her love through the same screen, using the gentlest touch she could with her fingers. All too soon the clip was over, but not before she learned the children were now back in Salem, heading to school, the life they had known before being reassembled by the capable hands of Nanny , Tippin, Lorene and Cookie. It was up to her now to bring the others home, and to make sure EJ and Harris were in no way implicated in the deeds she was carrying out for Stefano.

EJ had walked into the office building, signed in at the security desk, while Harris waited, making sure no one would try and assist Lester. The guard looked to be an easy take out, but when he heard EJ yelling, both he and the guard bolted for the open door where EJ was standing.

"Who was here last?" rather than wait, he took the clipboard to see for himself, and it showed a sign in of Sabrina O'Malley, but no sign out.

"Oh, God, is he ..is he..dead?"the guard figured it would be a really hard report to write up, this was only his third shift at this assignment.

"Smell for yourself" was all EJ replied to the idiots question.

EJ was on the phone to the authorities, while Harris poked about. The first thing he saw at the open window was the heel lying on the floor. At the desk he saw the open rolodex, with the last card placed in it, and he read the name Sabrina O'Malley. He had almost reached to take it out, when he recalled just where that odor he was noticing had come from. Stefano had once used a poison to do in one of his enemies with a poison that had smelled eerily like ink, the same ink that was on the business card. Harris looked about, and found a piece of cloth under a plant, taking it, he used it to wrap it up, then put it in a bubble mailer he found in the desk of Lester.

While awaiting the arrival of the police, EJ used the time to ingratiate himself with the guard, and pull a bit of information from him.

"Oh yea, that was a great race..it is so nice to meet my fans, and know they still remember me! Now the lady, this Sabrina, you say she was a red head?"

"I remember every race..you were the greatest..oh yes, that was a head of hair you did not miss, and the legs...lets just say her skirt was short enough to show me she knew enough to shorten it! Woo woo!"

"Yes, I'm sure I know what you mean, now height? Weight"

"Not very tall, and petite, but she had a nice little pair of..well, now I am a married man you know, I probably should not go there".

"Of course, I understand perfectly. Oh my, looks like you will have to answer this all over again as the police are here!"

Once again, even though the police had reason to be the slightest bit suspicious, EJ and Harris had arrived well after the death happened, and according to the guard, had not been in long enough to do anything to Mr. Lester.

Sami had flown through the night on the ride back to the village of Bourbon on the Water, she had chosen it for the name. She could not resist it, and had to see what it was about.. It was a town built around canals and was known as the Venice of the Cotswold, one of the most beautiful areas of England. It was also removed from London, and the chance that one of the councils protectors might locate her. Stefano had approved of her instincts in choosing the small but picturesque village where she was staying for the next couple of weeks.

After a few days of the news of Lester' death dying down, she felt safe enough to venture out, as long as her head was completely covered with a brunette wig, and her eyes camaflauged withhorn rimmed glasses . Her story to the innkeeper was that she was an American studying for a English History Doctorate, and she was keen on studying the history as it pertained to King Charles, the first king to be executed. For some strange reason, it did fascinate her, and she was using the time to do research for a novel she had in mind.

EJ had also always been interested in history, and since he was walking by, he ducked into the bookstore that was on the market street of Stow on the Wold. He looked about, and saw the only other patron was a petite dark haired woman, head buried in a book, sipping at a cup of tea.

"I say, I am looking for a particular book on the King Charles period, written by Millar, would you know what I am thinking of" his voice was deep, and in that careful richness of tone he always managed, unless he was angered or impassioned, cut into Samis reverie as she had been deep into the book.

"Sorry guv, but the only copy I had left was just purchased by the young lady at the table" the clerk pointed to where Sami sat, frozen in helpless terror. All she could think of at the moment was that quote in Casa Blanca.."of all the gin joints, why did he hafta walk into mine?"

"I see, well I guess I will have to plod along, maybe in Bourbon on the Water I shall find another book purveyor!"

Her head was kept down, and she did not dare move, but she sensed EJ heading towards her.

"Enjoying the book? I wanted to find a copy of that for my wife, she has been expressing an interest in this period of history." She steeled herself, then looked up, keeping her expression still, for she did not want her smile at seeing him erupting into pure joy.

"It is quite fascinating, a royalist, measured for the crown, but found wanting by parliament" the huskiness of her voice still startled her when it came out.

"Oh, American eh? I hope you are enjoying your stay, Cotswold is beautiful isn't it?"

"Yes, I am enjoying it, thank you." Her voice was almost trembling, but she steadied it by quickly sipping a bit of tea.

He knew it was because of how much he missed his wife, but so much of this womans mannerisms made him think of Samantha, the way she held a book to read it, the way the glasses perched on her nose, but the voice was so different. Samanthas voice could be almost childlike, this was the voice of a woman who either smoked or was just naturally low. Since he could not detect the odor of cigarettes, he figured she was just naturally possessed of a very sexy voice.

Then she had pushed the book over to him, "Here, I can order it online anyway, I have not paid for it yet, and I have to be going. Be my guest" Then almost in a rush, she had gathered her handbag and wrap to head out the door.

EJ had thanked her, and held the door as she had hurried out. He took the book to the clerk, and paid for it, and as he turned he saw the black Mercedes Benz SL speeding past once again. Harris met him at the door, pointing at it as they both sprinted for their car to give chase.

**Chapter XXXII**

"Good God, she is driving on the wrong side of the road! Crazy American bitch!"EJ had to give her credit for the evasive tactic, as it was causing others in the road to come into his side, making him head for the shoulder! By the time the traffic he had managed to avoid was gone, her car was no longer in sight.

By the time Sami realized she had reverted to American driving again, she had caused several accidents in her wake, but looking back, she saw that EJ was no longer behind her. The train station was just ahead, and she prayed there was a train scheduled for anywhere she could jump on. Where it was going did not matter, but she knew she was not up to outrunning EJ in an automobile, he would catch up to her, that was certain!

The ticket master was in no hurry to serve the agitated American, they were all the same it seemed. No one mattered but them, well he was not having it, just not having it!

"How much is it for the next train" Sami had with her only the clothes on her back, having left everything at the inn, but Stefano had told her to contact him if she had need of anything! That could wait, for now, she needed out of here fast!

"Trains come and go to many different locations, Miss, which direction shall I point you?"

"Which is the next train, where does it go?"

"Aaah, well now that we have clarified you only want the next one, that one would be due in ...umm approximately eight minutes, departing after five minutes."

"I'll take it, how much?" her voice was breathless, as she kept looking over her shoulder to make sure no car came into the carpark area she had left the vehicle in.

"How much? Well the train makes a total of eleven different stops, would you care to stop at Biden, Gloucestshire, Ornishire, Mousel, Germain, Bissel, Reading, .."

"Stop, please, I haven't much time, where does it stop at, just take me there!" Sami was desperate as she saw the minutes ticking by. EJ would know if he had not overtaken her, she would have abandoned the car!

"One ticket for Bath, that will be twenty two pounds." And a lesson in manners taught, thought the clerk!

Sami hurried to the train and sat down, keeping her eyes out on the car park, willing the train to please start moving!

"Turn into the train station, EJ, I think we should have caught her by now, there have been no turn outs, I would hazard she will head there." Harris was familiar with chases, and it was what he would have done in her shoes.

"Yes, just wish I knew who the hell our little assassin is working for, and who is next on her list!"

"Check it out, see, I told you!" Harris pointed out the Mercedes in the carpark, EJ swung over to stop in behind it. The door was locked, but Harris quickly picked it, and sat inside to go through any clues it offered to her identity. The floor board offered up a pair of heels in black and white pattern, with one heel broken off, and the shoes both covered in now dried mud and grass. A cash receipt from a local inn was the jackpot! The name she had signed in a girlish hand was Sabrina O'Malley!

Sami looked out the, trying to keep her face semi hidden, but what she had dreaded to see was happening. They were both headed into the station, and all she could hope was that the clerk was as obstinate with them as he had been with her.

"I say, old chum, has there been an American woman in here to purchase a fare?"

"Funny you should ask, I see, oh, maybe three or four Americans in here a week, don't much care for 'em, a woman you say? Funny you should ask, as of those three or four Americans I see each week, oh, maybe one is a woman..they are the worst 'o the lot too. Always pushy..ya think they are like that in Amer..."he stopped as EJ loomed over him, finally losing it.

"Has there been one in here today? And if so where was the fare purchased to?"EJ seemed threatening now, so the clerk decided it was going to be easier to just answer the question without further elaboration.

"She just got on the train there pulling out for Bath..now will that be all?" dismissing the man who he thought was becoming rather rude, the clerk returned to his magazine.

"Come on, we will drive to that station, we can beat the train, I'm sure of it! It's less than ninety kilometers!"

"Samantha, my lovely, you are doing splendidly! EJ is really slipping if he cannot catch up to you with even Harris's help!" Stefano had listened to her tale of woe, as if it were a tremendous joke he was enjoying to no end. "But I did warn you to stay inside, you know that don't you.?"

"I am not going to outsmart them much longer, you know they will just drive ahead, I have to get off of here!"

"Ahh, but they will be stopping at all the stops as well, EJ knows the system and so does Harris, no, I shall have to arrange a little diversion for you, and when it happens, get off, I will have someone meet you and get you to the next assignment. By the way, Liam got a tooth today!"

The police were combing the station, keeping all new passengers away, as well as any greeters. Bomb threats were nothing new, but threats complete with a series of small explosions were something else. Sami saw what was happening, and decided to make her move then.

"Maam, you cannot get off the train, we have a situation here!" The train police tried to stop her, but she looked at them, while pointing to the covered up pillow stuffed down her pants, and grimacing in the imitation of a labor pain. The policeman decided he wanted nothing to do with this, and pointed her towards the exit!

"This way ma'am, I have the car ready!"Stefano was as good as his word, Sami had learned as with EJ, when he wanted something to happen it did. Driving out the station entrance, the car they passed was the red Porsche 911 EJ had chased her in earlier. Now it was all good, she would be able to get on with the third leg of her mission. She read the folder her driver had passed off to her. It was on to Paris, and one of the most celebrated but discreet maison closes or brothel in existence. This was the crown jewel of all of the pleasure palaces once founded by Stefano. Now operated by Pierre Christophe, another member of the council. Of all of those who Stefano was now having her eliminate, this was his favorite, and he almost had cried himself when ordaining this erasure.

The notes to Sami were simple, "You will be introduced as one of the most enticing new prospects for his establishment, on the recommendation of one of my closest allies. Pierre never lets a new lady into the fold until he has shall we say, made her intimate acquaintance. This is when you will kill him."

After the notes she placed the call Stefano expected, "Are you crazy? Never mind, we know the answer to that..I can't do this!" 

"This is getting tiresome, Samantha, this is the easiest one yet. Christophe is an old man, he just thinks he is a Lothario..honestly all her ever wants is for you to accompany him into a private salon, just make enough noises to make his staff think he is still capable, then you kill him, he is thought to be sleeping off the effects of the strenuous lovemaking, and you leave. What could be simpler?"

"Are you sure he won't try to..you know?"

"You are so delightful, a woman of true virtue! Murder is acceptable, but a little harmless pleasure..ohh, what a treasure EJ has!"

Pierre Christophe came into the salon, greeting several patrons, and kissing the hand of several of the working ladies. He had the appointment with the new arrival, and was eager to see how she would fit in. When he saw her, his eyes lit up in appreciation.

Her lustrous red hair fell in waves down to the middle of her back. A floor length dress of green satin was clinging to every curve of her figure, with the back cut away to a point just above the rounding of her buttocks, and the front allowed a heady vision of rounded, and cream colored cleavage. When she smiled, the coral of her lips revealed perfect pearls of teeth. Yes, he thought, she would be fantastic for his clientele.

She was sitting at the bar, sipping a glass of champagne, but he saw she had two empty stem glasses in front of her. Her legs were crossed and a slit revealed them up to mid thigh. He was almost to her when the hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"Pierre, old friend, how have you been?"

"EJ, uh..uh..yes, fine, how wonderful to see you? You too Harris..Good to see both of you..so much unpleasantness has been going on..I hope you know I had no part in it, it was the work of.."the name was whispered into EJ's ear.

"Is there anything I can do to make up to you any perceived slight?"

"Yes, there is". EJ smiled with malice.

"Please, EJ, for old times sake, I mean remember how it was"

"Relax Pierre, I may have saved your life already..all I want from you..."EJ paused a moment.

"What, EJ, you name it , it is yours!"

"I should like a couple of hours of that young lady's time!"EJ nodded towards the petite red head sitting at the bar.

**Chapter XXXIII**

Downing her third glass of liquid courage, the bartender looked at her in doubt. "Hon, you are a professional, it does not do to get so drunk the customer outlasts you".

"She won't be having anymore, thanks Frank," and EJ took hold of her arm, pulling her to her feet as she made to protest.

"Don't say one word, Miss O'Malley, we have business to conduct, privately!" and she found herself picked up in his arms and carried up the stairs to the private rooms, to the ribald laughter of the other patrons.

"Yeah , go EJ, I would be eager too if it was me!" at the familiarity present in the mans words to her husband, Sami looked around in anger. Why would EJ have been in a place like this..and as she figured it out her temper began to burn in earnest.

Once he had her in the room, he dumped her unceremoniously on the four poster bed, and locked the door. Her knees came up protectively to her chest, as she saw him loosen his tie, while removing his jacket. He then took hold of her hand, and began to remove the rings she had on several fingers, as well as the bracelet on her wrist. It all happened so quickly, she did not think to protest. Then she realized she had to, if she was to regain the upper hand in this encounter. It would do no good for him to find..too late..he had found the clasps in both the ring stones, and the bracelets where the tiny vials of the poison were hidden. He had begun to open the bracelet up, when she startled, and grabbed it from him. Then he saw, the needle system for delivering the dosage that would have done in poor Christophe was hidden within the delicate clasp of the bracelet, and he had been but a fraction of an inch from scratching himself with it.

"Thank you, I think, but why did you save me from that, I would imagine I am somewhere on your list if you are working for Frederich."

"I don't know what you mean, I only wanted to save my jewelry from your crude attempts at opening a delicate clasp..now may I have it returned please, the bracelet has sentimental value" she tossed her head defiantly, thinking she had to carry out this bluff, and get out of this room before he got any more information. Besides, the idea that he would be unfaithful to her in a brothel was infuriating her, and she knew if she did not find a way out, she would be scratching his eyes out soon.

"I am losing patience, and I expect you to be talking to me soon, or else we will be doing something else..." he moved closer to her, and in spite of herself, she was looking at him with longing..he caught it, and smiled evily. Taking her chin in his hands, he brought her face up to look him in the eyes.."I am rather irresistible , aren't I , it is a curse you know, and I have to say, if I were not a very happily married man I might want to.."his words ere silenced by her kiss as she found she could not fight it anymore, her hunger and need for him was too great!

His astonishment was subdued by the rush of sensation, and he could not fight it, just pulled her against him as the heat flamed up between them. Then he knew, why he knew, he could not say, but he whispered her name, "Samantha, my God, Samantha, how did you?" but he could not say anything else, as she pulled the shirt away from his chest, and brought him down on the bed with her, stopping his questions with her kisses. All she wanted was to feel his lips and hands on her body, while she did the same to him. He could not even say her name now, it seemed so strange to be holding and loving this woman who did not look like his Samantha, did not sound like his Samantha, but who made love in the same sweet fiery way he had missed these months so badly.

Falling back, he pulled her onto him so he could look her directly in the eye. "What in the world have you been up to young lady, this is not childs play!"

"And why am I now finding my husband engaging the services of a "lady of the night", what were you planning on doing with Sabrina O'Malley?"

"I was going to make her talk!"

"Oh, I see, one of those kind of gentlemen callers," she smiled at him, her green eyes twinkling.

"Can you take those lenses out please, I want to see my wife"

"Sure, but the hair is here to stay until I get to a hairdresser" her eyes once more the cornflower blue he loved, she got up from the bed to pull on a robe.

"What did they do to your..your.."he pointed downward.

"Hey, you know how many crunches I would have to do to get a butt like this?"

"I liked your butt the way it was"

"Don't worry, I imagine it grows back!" Sami was brushing her hair, while she looked at him, this was not as good an idea as it had seemed a few minutes ago.

"EJ, I am supposed to kill Christophe tonight".

"Forget about it."

"EJ, I have to, otherwise, we may never see Ace or Liam again, you have to let me finish my assignment", the explanation of what was going on took an hour, and soon they heard the knock of the madam who kept time at the door.

"Please inform Christophe, I am buying the services of Miss O'Malley for the night, in fact, we shall be going out on the town. My credit card is with Mr. McMurty, please see to it.

EJ had tossed her clothing at her, dressing quickly himself. Before Christophe had come out to protest his lady being removed, Harris had situated himself in between him and the couple coming out of the room.

"Let it go Pierre, you are probably lucky to be alive, and once we settle up with Frederich, we will probably be back here to settle your bill too. Are we clear on that?"Harris had the ability to look a man in the eye and make it seem they were looking into the cold eyes of a reptile. He practiced that look in the mirror daily, as it was good to have to not use force when fear was just as effective.

EJ again carried Samantha in his arms, while waving a goodbye to the laughing patrons. When he came up to Christophe, he simply said, "Get your coat, you are coming with us" and he also had the look of the reptile as he said it. Christophe called for his coat.

**Chapter XXXIV**

Once in the street area, Harris looked about for a likely auto. He needed it to be fast, able to hold all four passengers, and easily accessible. He spotted the Mercedes sedan, and picked the lock expertly. Once inside, he used the device that automatically started up any automobile, handy thing he kept on hand for emergencies. Christophe was shoved into the front seat alongside Harris, still trembling with fear as he imagined this would be his last moments on earth. Samantha lost her footing, and slipped against the frightened man, hitting him square in the neck, and EJ had steadied her into the back seat. He kept his arm tightly around her, holding her against him, as if he were loathe to let her out of his sight and his life ever again.

Christophe began to pray silently, then as the distance from his establishment grew, his prayers increased in volume..Harris looked at him with a glare, which needed no words. He became silent. After a few minutes, he had slumped against Harris, who shoved him over to make driving possible.

"Oh Jesus! Sweet Mary!" Harris pulled over to the side of the road.

"What's wrong man?" reaching up to look at Christophe, EJ saw the open eyed, open mouthed look of death.

Samantha tried to make herself small in the seat, as EJ turned to stare coldly at her, as he remembered her clumsy stumble against the hapless Christophe earlier. "Give it over, Samantha, this instant."

Lips pursed, she undid the bracelet and handed it to him. "Those as well". He pointed to her fingers and the two rings.

"EJ, Stefano said it had to be done tonight. Think about it! Did you ever not do what he told you to do, when he told you to do it?"

"What has he made of you?" EJ sounded worried, but also a little in awe of her as well.

"I want my son back. Harris, do you want Liam back as well? Is this worthless slimy piece of human pond scum worth one hair on your sons head? I did not think so" was her answer to his lack of a response.

"Now let me call Stefano and tell him it is done. I want to see how Ace and Liam are!"

The body was dumped off the side of one of Le Pont Neuf, a lovely bridge with the grotesque bizarre sculpted faces along the pillars. As he went over, Harris saw a definite resemblance to the face sculpted on the third pillar to Christophe as he looked in death. For someone untrained, he had to hand it to Samantha, she was good at her work. Stefano had chosen well.

"Stefano, this is Samantha. When you get this message you will know that Christophe is checked off. I had to get him out of the house, EJ and Harris were scheduled to be there this evening..I am only a few steps ahead of them..so I will contact you when I get to Berlin. Please tell Ace I love him, and tell him to take good care of Liam." To her relief, Stefano was not answering, this was his scheduled down time on the Phoenix.

"You think Stefano is going to be fooled by that little charade my love?"

"It will have to do until we can come up with something better!"

Having just been present while his sweet wife committed murder right under his nose, EJ was willing to wait and see if they could come up with something better.

"What does Stefano have in mind for you next m'love?"

"He never tells me until I contact him, and he gets my assignment to me. But having you with me is gonna gum it up, why don't you let me go on my own, you can follow me!"

"Of course, that sounds like a wonderful idea, eh' say what Harris? We just let our little red headed amateur assassin go heading off to East Berlin, or possibly into the Ukraine, where she can charm the likes of Adolph Freidrich..as I recall, he is half Ukrainian, and half Nazi, would you like to hear a few stories about him during the last World War, he was only fourteen, but he was one of the most feared guards ever seen in any of the camps"

"Well then, EJ he should be easier than any of them, my goodness how old he must be! You have to let me finish, Stefano said that it is the only way he will give Ace back to us" Sami had no compunction against eliminating a senior citizen who was probably some evil butcher in his past life. She would be doing the world a favor, while getting their son back. What was his problem?.

"I love you Samantha, but you have been extremely lucky, and what guarantee do you have that he will keep his word? This is not Father Jankins you are dealing with here." EJ looked at her as if he were speaking to a willful child, and it made her angry!

"EJ! Don't you give me that! I want my son back, I want Liam back, and whatever it takes I will do it, and if Stefano reneges, well, we will just have to kill him too!"

"Well, I am so glad to see you have a plan B in mind."

Harris drove the stolen car for the nine hour trip into Berlin, as EJ and Sami slept. He used the time to process what he felt would be the best plan. He knew EJ was right, Sami was not any match for Freidrich. He also knew it was no accident that EJ and Sami happened to be at Christophes establishment at the same time. Stefano would have seen to that. He wanted them to work together. How, well that remained to be seen.

Of all of Stefanos cohorts, this was the most brutal and ugly of them all. A huge man, when he was younger, he had been known to challenge men to wrestle him, promising them if they bested him, he would step aside as leader of the gang he had formed. There was only one catch, only the winner of the match lived. He delighted in getting a leg lock around a mans neck, then squeezing until they were either asphyxiated or their neck broken. It was known he had practiced this maneuver on helpless prison camp victims. Now he was a drug king, and his contacts were world wide, but he still had a grudging respect for Stefano.

Pulling off the A-2 for a coffee stop, Harris shook EJ awake. "Uh Boss, I don't think Sami has any clothing with her, and that dress will be a little odd heading into Berlin in the morning..we need to take care of that."

The young lady stopping for a cup of coffee to get her through the night was unaware that Harris had just lifted her suitcase from her trunk. EJ fished through it, came up with a pair of jeans and a sweater top which he sent Sami into the ladies room to change into.

"American? Ohhh...I have sweater just like that! I got in Paris..it is so beautiful on you!" the young lady in the bathroom with Sami was friendly, and Sami smiled at her cute German accent, and said "danka" as she went out the door.

EJ began making hotel reservations for them in Berlin, and called a few of his contacts to arrange a meeting with Freidrich. For now, he was going to make sure Samantha was not going to contact Stefano, he would be the one Stefano dealt with from this moment on. He was grateful to Stefano for keeping his family safe, although he knew there would be a price to pay for that. That was Stefano, he gave, you owed. Nothing new about that, and if you betrayed him, you owed even more.

Sami looked out on the forested hills of Germany, her thoughts on a small boy waiting for her to come and get him. EJ knew immediately what she was thinking, and she turned to him as his hand covered hers. That small gesture sealed the contract between them once more, as always he had her back, she had his.

**Chapter XXXV**

The days spent in the sun onboard the yacht or going out on the launch had tinted his skin to a golden tinged brown, and made his hair like spun silver. Ace did not care that he was a beautiful child though, he only cared that one more day was now ticked off on the calendar his mother had left him. As of now it had six rows of the days she had penciled off for him, and he used his crayon to mark off each day as it now passed. That she was going to return by the appointed day he never doubted, but to a child each day was like a week.

Stefano wanted the children up with him as much as possible, he clapped for Ace as he learned to dive and go for the bottom of the pool fetching the coins he tossed in. He also spent time on the phone tracing the progress of Samantha. It had taken a bit of time for her and EJ to converge, and the way they had done so was pleasing to him. For in his heart, he too was a bit of a romantic, albeit a rather twisted one.

"Ace, if only I had been given the opportunity to travel the world with your Grandmother, knocking off my enemies, with her help of course..I would have been a happy man. The woman had no imagination though, Your mother, now she is a Brady of a different color! I hope you appreciate what she has done for you someday! However, now she must have some help."

He had listened to her message, secure in the knowledge that both EJ and Harris knew she was not just a bit ahead of them, he would have been sorely disappointed in the two of them if they had not caught on to her by now. It just was fun while it lasted. He pictured them trying to get to the council members and take them out discreetly, while she went boldly in where no professional assassin dared to go!

"Ace! Let me see you do the cannonball again, that was your best one! Come here little fellow, let me see that tooth of yours, ooooh nice one!" As the duenna held Liam up for Stefano to look at, he rubbed his finger tenderly over the gum of the drooling baby.

Sami finished putting her hair up into a neat twist, then changing into one of the new outfits EJ had sent over for her. She was looking forward to going out to dinner with him when he returned. Smootiing the dress over her hips, she turned to catch her silhouette in the mirror. The perfect bottom she had always envied on her sisters was now hers, and she was thrilled! When she turned to the side and buckled the wide white belt, the yellow of the dress was intensified against her pale skin and the auburn hair. Chuckling, she buttoned the six buttons the dress had, and wondered how EJ always managed to buy her clothes with buttons!

When EJ came in, the attendant pushing in a dinner cart she was surprised, and a little upset! The nightlife of Berlin was legendary, and she wanted to explore it.

"What have you got there?" but she could see, it was one serving of several of her favorite dishes.

"Your dinner, you have not eaten anything, you must be starved..tenderloin of pork, asparagus, roast potatoes, and for dessert, crème de brulet..coffee, and a bottle of merlot. Is there anything else you would care for?"

"Reservations, outside of this room!"

"Not possible, Harris and I have to arrange a meeting with Adolph, and you are not coming along! You are not to be seen by him. I don't want to have my position weakened by him using you against me. So do stay in and be a good girl! I even rented some movies for you to watch..and I shall be back before you know it!"

"No! I don't like this EJ, let me come, he won't know it is me! I am Sabrina O'Malley, not Samantha Brady! I know what to do"

"I said no, and no more arguments, now come, give me a kiss," but she had turned away from him. His sigh made her think better of it, and she went to him, hugging him to her, and leaning her head against his chest. He did not feel her hand slipping around to the back flap of his jacket, and pressing the tiny homing device Stefano had given her as part of her assassin kit. "These little things make ones job easier Samantha, and I like detailed field studies done on any new tools of the trade. Please let me know how it works out if you get a chance to use it. This hairpin is the tracer, the device is this little piece of sticky that is very discreet. Use it wisely!"

"I love it when you listen to reason, you Brady women so rarely do! I love you anyway, you are the best..oh..love the dress.. buttons, hmm. Wish I had a bit more time love, but Harris is waiting on me downstairs in the bar.".

Her German phrase book was turned to the page on taxi cabs, and by the time she found the phrse "follow that cab", they were blocks ahead of her. Her cries of "schnell! schnell! finally irritated the driver enough that he had looked in the rear view mirror and snarled back at her.

"I speak English, please do not butcher German anymore, I will capitulate!"and the driver followed the other cab into the underworld of Berlin, where the clubs stayed open all night, and as Sami soon saw, the outfits of the revelers on the street were leather, pleather, fur, as well as assorted chains and whips as accessories. Harris and EJ had ducked into a club where patrons dressed like freak show contestants were standing outside waiting for entrance. She looked down at her yellow dress, accompanied with her exquisite handbag, and knew she was going to stick out like a sore thumb.

"Where can I find clothing like those people are wearing?" and his thumb pointed across the street to a shop. She paid him his Euros, then ran across the street, ignoring the cat calls of "Fraulein Hausefrau!".

Once the shopkeeper had decided the crazy American was serious, he had brought out one of his finest black leather ensembles for her to try. It was a leather halter dress, with a bustier tight about the bodice, about a foot above the knee, set off by black fishnet stocking, a studded leather collar, six inch heels, and a hair accessorie that turned her into a brunette with feathers hanging down her back.

"Stunning, and of course, madam, your riding crop!" he handed off the last item to complete the effect and took the two thousand Euros from her hand. After the cab ride, she was now down to less than a thousand Euros, and she hoped it was enough to get her to the head of the line at the club across the street.

"You come for the dance contest yah?" When the doorman heard her poor German, he also took pity, as what she had said was enough for him to realize she was there for the amateur dance of the disciplinarians played out there each Thursday. He pushed her to the line of about fifteen women who were each being oogled by what appeared to be judges, and as they got to her, one nodded and pointed her to the line going into the back stage door. When she got close enough to see what was happening on stage, she was also close enough to see EJ, Harris and a huge bald man sitting front row center, taking in the spectacle of a young woman doing a dance that Sami could only look at in shock. Then she realized, "Oh God, I am going to have to do that!"

**Chapter XXXVI**

The music was loud enough to make talking impossible, and Adolph was fine with that. He greeted EJ and Harris like old friends, not people he would be burying in a garbage dump soon. The drinks were on him, and he made room for them to sit with him and watch the show! The ladies were exceptional tonight, he always loved the amateur night dancers, there was something so pure about them!

When the redhead came out, her nervousness so apparent, Adolph smiled at her to offer her encouragement. She was introduced as the American, Miss Sabrina O"Malley, and the crowd was on it's feet as she came in, hitting at some of them playfully with the riding crop. Her music was "Gangsta, Gangsta ", and when she began to move in sync with the tempo he was mesmorized!

"EJ, we should all have our women move like that for us, yah?"and EJ could only nod sickly as he saw his wife on stage, bending over and leering at the whole table of men from between her spread legs, while slapping her own bottom with the riding crop. Harris did not want to stare with the boss right next to him, so he had buried his nose in the beer stein, trying not to peer through the empty glass after he had downed the brew. The dance lasted four of the longest minutes of Samis life, but when she had finished, the whole audience was hooting and clapping. The heavy arm of the bald man came to get her, and she was surprised at his strength for his age. He merely caught her about the waist, and carried her like a child on his massive hip to his table, setting her like a prize on his lap!

"Fraulein, I have never seen such dancing, you Americans got da moves on us! You make poetry up there, sheer poetry..such grace of motion..EJ, is she not the most of the graceful you ever seen?" To accentuate his words, Sami had tapped EJ on the face lightly with the crop, and he had grabbed it, while glaring at her.

"EJ, please, the lady meant no harm, vas only funning wit you...here you take her for avhile, I have some little business, then I come back and we do your business, maybe go out of here to top office where more quiet..yah, you think?" He then shoved Sami roughly into EJ's lap, EJ held onto her tightly with one arm, while trying to wrest the skirt down over her thighs with the other. The leather did not lend itself to his efforts, and when she crossed her legs, he gave up, putting his jacket over her lap. Harris knew the fact that Adolph was willing to leave the room while they were there meant there was no exit for them, and as he looked about the room, he saw the various goons move into position. This was where Adolph planned to do them. No weapons were allowed inside the club anyway, an Adolph figured he did not need them. He was a weapon, even at his advanced years, plus he had plenty of muscle.

"Why did you come here, you know I told you stay in the room!"

"He is going to kill both of you, don't you know that? You need me!"

"And you are going to do what, beat him to death with this?" EJ took the crop from her and threw it to the ground.

"Uh Boss, we maybe can use her help, if she brought any of that..Sami, did you give it all to EJ?"

"Stefano said I should always have a little in reserve. So I have just a smidge left EJ, I swear!"

"Where is it Samantha?" he demanded an answer, and her eyes fell upon the riding crop. Harris bent to retrieve it, but that was when Adolph decided to return.

"I believe this is yours madam?"he handed it to her with a smile revealing a set of crooked and yellowed teeth, several of them made of solid gold. "Come upstairs with us, join our little party", but without asking her, he had hoised her over his shoulder to carry her fireman style up the stairs. EJ had stepped into line to follow, keeping his jacket discreetly over her exposed bum.

Her breath was cut off while she was carried, and when she had been put down in his office, she had looked at him indignantly, when he began to laugh uproariously at her!

"Mrs. Wells, may I compliment you on your dancing skills? EJ, she is magnificent! Stefano was telling the truth".

Harris looked about for some way out of this trap, but it looked like Stefano had set it with care, It was clear to both him and EJ that Stefano intended for all of them to die here, by the hand of this man. There was not to be an exchange of Liam and Ace for the lives of these men, Stefano would be keeping the children, the three of them were going to die, basically to entertain this sadistic bastard. EJ read his mind, and in sync, they decided to make their move. Adolph began to circle them, as they caught him in between them, making sure neither of his massive hands caught hold of them.

Harris landed a blow, which knocked his head back, but this man could take any punch either of these men could land, and not even break a sweat.

"Johann! Please get the freezer ready for more meat!" he called to his goon standing outside the door. No one would dare come in to interrupt or to help him. That would have meant they would be feeling the iron thigh master!

EJ tried to land a blow as well, but his arm was caught up, and when Harris came to assist, he was caught up too, and Adolph body slammed down to the ground, pulling their arms with him. His massive thighs closed about both of their necks and he smiled over at a terrified Sami who stood frozen. She saw the blood being choked out of her husband and Harris, then she remembered the riding crop. The blows she rained down his exposed baldness made him laugh as he kept up the pressure on both mens necks! The more she slapped him with the sharp little point the more he laughed, until he started to feel the effects of the poison. The numbness began at his feet and traveled upward, making the paralysis of first his limbs, then his face, then his lungs, fnally resulting in the loosening of the grip on Harris and EJ. They both began to sputter and choke as the oxygen began to spread back to their brain cells.

"EJ, oh God, EJ, are you alright, please, say you are alright!"

"I'm fine Samantha, really, God I love you, you are my woman, my Amazon Princess! What shall I do with you though?" They looked into each others eyes as if they could never get enough of looking at each other.

"Thanks for asking, EJ, I'm ok too, now lets get the hell outa here".Harris was opening up the window on the second story, and helping Sami out onto the fire escape.

**Chapter XXXVII**

The streets were dimly lit, and the chill of the night was getting to Sami as she leaned against EJ, he had already given up his jacket to her, but the skimpiness of her costume was not lending itself to any warmth. She never realized how leather could hold in the cold. They were making their way back to the hotel, and seeing no cabs in sight, they began to walk towards the subway system.

"I cannot believe you put yourself up on that stage in that get up! Do you know what it made me feel like to see you up there, half naked, dancing like a sex crazed siren?"

"No, EJ, but you can tell me later!" She could not help it, this outfit just brought out the really bad side of her.

"Would you two mind getting a move on, I would like to get the hell outa Dodge, Stefano will know by now he miscalculated, and he will send others".

"EJ, I don't believe Stefano did this, something else is going on".It did not seem to Sami that this was something he would set up, it was more like a test. His anger at the council had been real, she had felt it. They had attempted to destroy his entire legacy with the attack on the pub, and she remembered they had also been behind the attempted bomb death of Lexie. The only remaining members of the council now were EJ, Harris, Lexie, and Philip Kirakis. It seemed hard to fathom that Philip could have masterminded all of this, but not Victor. He had wanted her dead many times. Even his love of Caroline had not dissuaded him from blaming her for many of his misfortunes.

Looking at her as though he read her mind, EJ said, "I know what you are thinking, and if he is in any way culpable, he will wish you would just poison him!"

Harris had walked a few steps ahead, when he was met head on by the four young men who were swaggering their way down the sidewalk. Just the sight of their jackets, festooned with neo nazi ornamentation made Harris a little ornery. He had just spent the most harrowing as well unpleasant smelling time being crushed by a man who also had sported a shaven head, and the same type jacket. Harris was not in the mood to move aside for these thugs. EJ looked ahead and saw the change in Harris's stance, and placed Sami in behind a planter lining the walkway.."Stay here! Don't move!" and he stepped out to go to Harris's side.

"Those two?" EJ pointed to the ones he was stepping out for, and Harris gave him the go ahead.

"Out for a midnight stroll..well, welcome to the neighborhood, may we have your wallets?" the language spoken was a guttural lower class German, and EJ had a hard time translating exactly what was said, but his answer was the same as Harris gave his two targets. It might have gone on with just words, except the knife of one of them glinted in the street lamps light.

The combination of unused testosterone from the earlier encounter with Adolph, and just wanting to make a good show in front of Samantha was enough to put EJ in his full on karate mode. He felled one man with a kick to the solar plexes, and the other had almost the time to push the knife into EJ's side when EJ caught his arm and brought it down against the saw horse he had made of his knee. The crunch of breaking bone caused Sami to wince!

Harris never bothered with fancy karate kicks, he used straight boxer fisticuffs, but with lightning speed on one of the men, and when he went down, the other decided caution was the order of the day, and ran quickly into the darkness.

"Now why didn't you do that back there to Adolph, my neck might not feel like I need a masseuse right now if you had only been so quick at him!"

"You got in my way", EJ pulled Sami out from her hiding place, "Are you alright? I never wanted you to have to witness something that awful?" kissing her tenderly, his solicitation made Harris chuckle.

"Yeah poor little Lucretia Borgia there, such a delicate flower of womanhood! Come on, I need a drink and a warm bed. There is the station!"

The hotel bar was still open, and they sat having a nightcap, just like any three friends after a night out partying together. Harris left them to make his nightly call to Chandler, figuring she would be up and on her way to work by now. He had news for her, some good some bad, but he mainly wanted to hear her voice once more, and feel as close to her as he could.

EJ lay on the bed, waiting for Samantha to emerge from the bathroom. The disappointment on his face must have registered to her, since she asked him "What's the matter hon..are you still hurting?"

"No..it's just..well.."

"What is it? Tell me" She went to sit by his side as she brushed her hair. The hotel robe was tied tightly about her waist, and he reached for the belt..

"Sami, umm, do you think maybe.."he still hesitated, making her smile at him, as she tried to guess what he might be wanting this time.

"What, babe, anything..tell me.."her voice still came out in that husky whisper, but he was used to that by now.

"Could you put that outfit on again, just take the poison point off please!" He smiled with a lopsided grin.

"Oh..now..you look like a very naughty boy to me, I shall have to make sure and give you what you need to make you behave!"

**Chapter XXXVIII**

She rolled over in the bed to throw her arm over her husband, loving having him by her side in bed once again. The warmth she was seeking out was not there though, and her eyes opened in disappointment. He was sitting at the hotel desk table, sipping a cup of tea, looking at her with a sublime look of pleasure. The night had been long, and a little rough, but at the end, they had slept in each others arms, slightly bruised, but in an exhausted euphoric state.

He poured her a cup of tea from the pot, adding the milk and sugar amounts she loved, and put a small pastry on a plate for her, along with a couple of plump strawberries. She sat up in the bed, and took the tea from him, looking up at him in silence. It seemed so long since she had just looked at him, and now she could not get enough. Sipping the tea, she remembered the events of the night before and giggled in embarrassment as she glanced at the riding crop.

"I should think about getting riding lessons when we get home, I would not want to waste the money I paid for that!"

"Shouldn't worry about that, if I were you. Have a strawberry", EJ placed one in her mouth, laughing as the juice dribbled down her chin. Of course that gave him a better idea, so he crushed the juice from the berry trailing it down her lips, to her neck, then lower, while his lips followed.

When the knock came at the door from Harris, they were shocked at the time! EJ threw her a robe, donning one himself, then opened up to Harris. The look on his face was one of impatience, they were supposed to have met him at ten oclock this morning, but from the looks of the clothing strewn about the room, their minds had been occupied elsewhere.

"This was outside the door" Grimly, Harris handed over the envelope, and EJ saw the Phoenix seal on the lip. The front was addressed to Samantha Wells, so he waited expectantly for her to open it up.

She read aloud:

"My Dear Lady;

I am so impressed with you, and now that you are with EJ and Harris, the last part of your assignment can be fulfilled. I realize you probably thought the hapless Adolph was all you had to do, but I did neglect to mention one last task. Enclosed are tickets for the Orient Express for four from Vienna to Istanbul Please pick up your lovely wife at the Vienna Airport, Harris, she will be arriving at eight p.m. tonight on the enclosed flight itinerary.

Ace and Liam are fine, .very anxious to see you. Ace is marking the calendar each day Samantha, you have a very bright boy there.

Regards,

S.D.

"Damn him! What is he up to now?" Sami was growling, but Harris was reaching for the note to see what flight Chandler was coming in on.. He knew there would be no stopping her, and as for how Stefano arranged this, it was not even worth wasting time wondering about. This was Stefano. A man who cheated death on an annualized basis was not going to find forcing a lonely and scared woman into doing what her husband had forbidden of any great difficulty.

"Is there time to stop her?" EJ read the mind of Harris, but the shake of his mans head indicated the futility of it.

"If he is bringing Chandler, then I bet Liam is going to be allowed back to you, this is just Stefanos way of lording it over us again".

"Samantha, you know as well as I do, that is not what this means..he wants one more person to use as a bargaining chip. I just wish I knew what his end game really is."

As he heard the report of how Samantha had managed to do in the man Stefano had always thought of as invincible in a fight, he was so pleased with himself for the way she had become rather ruthless and single minded. Overcoming a natural revulsion towards taking human life when necessary was often necessary to survival. He had overcome it as a young child.

He was not surprised how Adolph had almost bested both EJ and Harris in the small confines of the office. Adolph had practiced the move on many prison camp internees, getting so skilled at it, he was once credited with killing three men at once with his technique. The story was now being spread about how he had been bested by a mere slip of a woman, and his empire was even now at this moment being split into fragments. To Stefano this was good, no minion below you should have amassed the organization that Adolph had. It was not good for maintaining discipline. He looked down at the child amusing the baby with building up blocks until they tottered and fell.

"Yes, Ace, that is a lesson we all learn in life, nothing can be built too high up, without it's eventual destruction. So how many days is it now until Mother returns?"

Ace pulled out the calendar page from his pocket and counted slowly, making sure he made no error before he used his hands to flash the number twenty one!

**Chapter XXXVIX**

Tippin got the phone by the second ring. As they heard it, all the kids came running to gather round, in case it was Dad calling with news of Mom.

"Quiet children, I must be able to hear your Father clearly.."Tippin admonished them, then gave them a thumbs up and a head nod. He then handed off the phone to Justin first, with the caution to be quick so the others had a turn.

"Dad?" Justin queried, but the voice that answered him was not his father. Funny, but it did not sound like his mother either.

"Justin, it is me, I swear honey, I ..I am just a little hoarse, but I'm fine really..and I will see you in about three weeks..how are you sweetie, is baseball going well..I am so sorry to miss your games ..I promise I will make this up to you.."

"Mom, no, it's not your fault, how is Ace, is he with you now?"her silence gave him an answer, just not the one he wished for. He got a few more minutes of small talk and I love you's before he had to hand off to Jessica. She bent to the phone with Kacie, so both of them could hear and talk at the same time. Kacie was talking about the new kitty they had, Jessica asking if Liam was alright, and the jumble of conversation went on, with Sami promising them all to be home soon. The thought of three more weeks before she could see them, and the rest of her family after all the devastation wreaked on them was hard, but at least she knew they were safe, and now she was with EJ. There was nothing they would not fight through together.

Chandler saw Harris at the greeting gate, and ran to him. He picked her up, twirling her around all the while scolding her for coming when he had told her to stay where she was.

"Harris, I have to be here, I don't; know how or why, but it is important that I am with you now. The same as it is important for Sami to be with EJ." Though he could not fathom it, the pure fact was, he was glad enough to see her, as glad as he had ever been to see anyone. He felt a completeness that had been missing ever since he had parted from her.

The train was leaving Santa Lucia Station, Vienna at 14:30 hours on Friday. That had given the women a few days of shopping to outfit themselves, as the saying on the Orient Express was that you could never be too overdressed. Harris and EJ had ordered the requisite tuxedos, about which Harris complained about incessantly. Of course when he had seen the look Chandler gave him when he tried it on, he allowed as how it might not be such a bad idea.

Blue and Gold, the train wagons gleamed in the afternoon sunshine, and EJ gave Samantha his hand to steady herself with as he helped her onto the train. Her traveling suit was a well tailored linen of pale yellow, the jacket short and fitted, with a skirt that flared ever so slightly to reveal her shapely legs set off by the tan pumps. Chandler was smartly dressed as well, in a light pink suit. Both of them were visions of light summer.

It was an overnight ride to Bucharest, and the first formal dinner on board they had decided to go to the dining car. This was an experience none had ever thought to have, even EJ was impressed, and wanted to give Stefanos open account a full measure of devotion! He ordered for them in a fairly passable French, and soon they were enjoying Les aiguillettes de gagret de canard or duck as he translated for them. For desert he teased Sami with Le vacherin glac'e aux fruits de la passion...a concoction of passion fruit, coconut iced meringue and tipsy pineapple salad. He ordered several selections of wines, and by the time the evening was over, Samantha was worried that her new butt was going to have to go in for a refitting.

"I told you, I liked your butt the way it was!"

"But my butt the way it was would not fit into that little leather number you enjoy so much!"

"I would imagine it comes in larger sizes!" he teased.

That night as they had separated into their own cabins, Harris had not wanted to linger, he seemed very tired and ready for bed for some reason!

For Samanta and EJ, this was a night to just lie in each others arms and watch the stars pass by above them. They once more were going to be facing an unknown, with just their faith in each other to steady them. He stroked her cheek, while brushing his lips to the top of her head.

"I want you to know whatever we have to do to get Ace back, and us back to our family, we will abide it..that is my promise to you darling, please believe in me, I want you to have no doubts."

"God, EJ, doubting you would be like doubting that these stars are actually there..shining down on us..I know they are there, and if a cloud should pass in front of them, I know they are still there, as I know you are there." Her hand reched out to smooth a lock of hair back from his brow

"There are so many things in my life I wish I could go back and undo, but sometimes I realize if I could do that, then one thing or another might have unraveled and I would not be here, right at this moment with you in my arms..so I have no regrets, and I hope you do not either..for everything we have been through together has only made us love each other more. You are my Queen, my beautiful Amazon Queen, amazing in strength and beauty, and if I end up in the bowels of Hell for the things I have done, all I can say is that it was worth every minute of that eternity for one second with you!"

She laughed with him, but added to his words, "If by some quirk I do make it to heaven, and you are not there, then watch out, I shall crash through those pearly gates, and nose dive down into hell after you, screaming your name..and they better let me in or else!"

The note was slipped under their compartment door sometime the next morning before they woke to the sound of the cabin steward bringing them their coffee and paper. It seemed they had one task to do while on the layover in Bucharest.

"Dear Samantha and EJ"

I trust you all are enjoying the comforts of the Orient Express. Wonderful food, and service c'est pa? You will be overnite at the Athene'e Palace Hotel, and while you are there, a gentleman will drop off a valise to you. I wish the contents to accompany you on your journey onward. Please continue to enjoy yourselves, I am getting nothing but good reports on how well you are finding the trains accoutrements and if all is well, I shall be in contact with you once you reach Budapest.

Of course Ace is well, and has gotten the days to seeing you down to seventeen. He is so clever!"

Ever yours,

SD

"My god EJ, he is watching us!"

"Samantha, this is Stefano, of course he is watching us. We are right now just gears meshing along in his little machinery. I just hope we continue to run smoothly, and not lock up for some reason!"

**Chapter XL**

A day and a half later, the train pulled into Budapest, Baneasa Station, and the cab was hailed to take the four to the hotel. Harris had kept his eyes peeled, but had been unable to ascertain who on the train could possibly be their tail. He could feel their presence, but whoever Stefano was using was impeccably professional. At check in, the mystery was ended, as the clerk checked them in then asked EJ to wait, something had been left in the hotel vault for him.

The valise was not of any particular quality, actually a cheap vinyl, so EJ had paid it no attention when he opened it up to find it had only an empty envelope inside. Harris though, had another idea when they got it into the room. He searched the room, finding a letter opener, and he slit the valise open, lifting it upended on the desk table. The diamonds spilled out like slippery marbles hitting the desk and splattering out across parquet flooring.

"Well, now we know why it was such a cheap valise, Stefano never wastes money."Harris knew that much about the old man, and secretly lauded him for not trying to throw good after bad as he scrambled about with EJ scooping up the stones.

"These are real, I presume," and he took one and scratched across a glass sitting on the sink. It left marked etching at quarter inch deep.

"Who are we to bribe with these, and what for?" Then he saw the initials on the side of the valise. K.B. "I'll be damned, he found her!"

"Found who?"Samanta demanded, as she and Chandler moved closer to examine the valise.

"Stefano had a foster daughter who was sold into white slavery..he spent thousands trying to find her, but after he had spent twenty grand, he was unwilling to part with any more money, it just was not panning out. Now he must know where she is, and he has chosen us to deliver the ransom.' EJ had deciphered the mystery.

"I am amazed you figured all that out from a Wal- Mart valise with glued on initials. Sounds like some kind of soap opera plot to me!" Chandler was skeptical, and let it be known from her news womans point of view.

"Actually it was the note, it had fallen out from the envelope in the valise."EJ was holding it as he read.

"Where is she?" to Sami all this meant was that once they had done this last assignment for Stefano, both Ace and Liam were going to be in their arms again!

"Bayranpusa Prison, Istanbul. Lovely". EJ gave a low whistle as he thought of what he knew about the Turkish Prison System. It was a country where you could get thirty years in prison for possession of one marijuana cigarette. For a woman who had been sold into white slavery, EJ had no doubt Kristin, from what he knew of her, would have undoubtedly risen in the ranks to buy her way out of the life, but what had she done to wind up in a Turkish prison?.

"Good at least to know what he is expecting of us eh?" Harris also knew about the prison system, he had buddies who had told him it was a place to avoid at all costs.

"And this is the woman who held Marlena prisoner to keep her from John, and they had a child or John thought it was his as I recall. I had a lot going on in my my life myself back then, so it is kind of hazy? That boy would be about ten years old now right? I wonder where he is.."

"No, Samantha, the child was really Stefanos, and he is probably being raised somewhere by lovely parents just as EJ and I were. Stefano chooses the time to reveal parentage, when he feels the child can best handle it I think. I feel sorry for this woman if she is in that prison, the conditions are dismal as I hear.

Chandler was also familiar with the prison as she had worked with colleagues in smuggling out interviews from women who had been interred within its walls. Now she knew why Stefano had asked her to be a part of this. Only Sami remained slightly clueless as she piped in, "Well, this shouldn't be so hard, we just bribe a guard or two, and voila, she is out, we get out children back!"

"Sami, this prison is one of the most primitive and brutal in the world. To be there is to be totally forgotten by society. When a woman ends up there, it means she had made very powerful enemies. They are often raped, beaten, just degraded in every way possible. The system is a textbook case of human rights abuse." Chandler remembered the stories she had smuggled out at as a cub reporter. She knew if she had been caught, she would have joined some of those prisoners.

"Well then, we just need to put our heads together when we get there and come up with something..I mean who is better at this stuff than us, right EJ? Harris? We want our kids back, and nothing is going to stop us right Chandler?"

Over the course of the next two days of travel, with the overnight stay in Bucharest, they made the plan. If it worked, they would be slipping the woman out of the prison, and taking her to Stefano' s yacht which would be moored in The Golden Horn of Istanbul. He would have what he wanted, they would have what they wanted. It would be a matter of a couple of weeks to make all the arrangements. Chandlers press connections were going to be used, and some of EJ's thespian talents. Harris would be muscle..and Sami..well she was going to be the long lost daughter of the woman who had once tried to murder her mother. Sami was pragmatic enough, and knew her mother well enough, she decided that was not something she would hold against her.

It was a lovely restaurant overlooking the harbor in Istanbul when Sami after consulting her pocket calendar announced to the other three, "We have twelve days left to do this, so we better get started".

The three of them looked up, wanting to know the significance of twelve days. "I promised Ace this is the date his father and I would be coming for him, and we have to keep our word to him and Liam as well.".

EJ reached for her hand, "We will darling, we will".

Chandler and Harris also put their hands atop those of EJ and Sami in a vow among the four that the promise would be kept.

**Day 12**

"Hello Mr. Argrazian, this is Chandler Loring, I met your years ago with my group "Reporters Without Borders, remember? I have heard such encouraging things about the improvement of conditions in the Prison of Bayranpusa, and I wondered if I would be able to speak to you about these developments? It would really be a way to improve the perception of Turkey in the West if it is true!" Her voice was cajoling, and warm as she spoke to the man who handled the press relations to the foreign news agencies.

He did remember her, and it was not a pleasant memory as he recalled. This bunch had been responsible for so much bad publicity, and that had not looked good on his offices. He was almost ready to just dismiss her when his secretary held up the latest European missive on his governments treatment of Kurdish women prisoners. Maybe this woman would offer a counter balance to that.

The two of them met for a pleasant lunch, and he found himself totally charmed by her. She was professional in demeanor, but thoroughly attractive to look upon. Best of all, she came alone, no annoying camera men trying to film the encounter, or so he thought. Pesky camera phones were something he seldom thought about, and whilst he thought it was a very private lunch, Sami was sitting across from them, dining with Harris and getting the entire rendevous on a very u-tube uploadable file. The small mic hidden on Chandler also was recording as she finally got down to business.

"I should like to be invited to film inside the prison, especially the side devoted to political and the women of ill repute sides. As sort of a human interest, bad girl, good girl story. Would you arrange that for me?"

"Absolutely not! The prison is sacrosanct, we do not allowing filming inside!"

"Do you know how much in Turkish Lira one of these if worth?" she pushed a small diamond over to him.

"You are trying to bribe me!"

"Am I succeeding ?"

"This stone is probably three carats..I would say it is worth about twenty thousand euros..not enough to endanger my life and my livelihood..you must think I am some kind of whore!"

"Some kind of whore has never been in doubt, I remember you from the last time. Right now we are just negotiating price! "

"How do I reach you when I have made the arrangements?"his hand reached out to accept the payment of five diamonds.

"This is my hotel, leave word. Do not try to double cross me, please, this conversation is on the record. I expect you to make this happen in two days." and she had looked towards Harris and Sami who had gaily waved the cell phone at him.

**Day 11**

"I guess we get access tomorrow, he said to be at the prison at seven in the morning. Since we know torture starts at nine, he must want us there during the morning meal". Taking a sip of the strong Turkish coffee, Chandler wrote a few notes to herself.

"Have you found out anything Chandler, about why Kristen is in this prison anyway? This seems like a rather odd place for her to end up, and you say she has been here for three years? Wonder why Stefano is just now getting round to freeing her?" EJ was working on his lap top, reading some business from Mythic back in Salem as he also sipped his coffee on the hotel balcony of his room.

Sami came out to join them, having just finished her shower. EJ poured her a cup of the coffee, and she picked out a piece of fruit to accompany it. Her auburn hair was wrapped in a towel, and Chandler gave her a funny look, almost as if she was fitting her as a puzzle into her plan.

"EJ, Kristen was sentenced to fifteen years of hard labor, but seems to have avoided at least that part of the sentence. This was a trumped up charge of espionage for the Kurdish tribesmen. I think she may have spurned a suitor, possibly a suitor of importance, and this is his revenge. The trial notes certainly do not show a strong case for her being tried even. You have to remember, this is a country in the middle of other countries that has a strong male patriarchal culture, you insult a male at your peril, and it looks like she insulted a highly placed one.

"As to why Stefano has left her in here, your guess is as good as mine, but I think he may have been teaching her a lesson. I looked up all the history with Marlena and her, and you know how he always felt about Marlena. Then there is the matter of the way she used his son Elvis as a means to an end. He is family oriented to a fault".

"Yeah like an earthquake fault you mean." Sami looked out over the horizon at the blueness of the Mediterranean, as if she could will the man to sail into that harbor and deliver Ace and Liam to her. Instead, they would have to get this madwoman out of a prison she probably deserved to be in at who knew what cost to themselves?

"Samantha, can I ask what has gone on with your voice? It is so very interesting, so deep and husky now, was it due to the smoke that night at the pub?" Chandler was again looking at Sami with that strange look of appraisal.

"No, Stefano surgically altered my voice. From what I know, it is reversible, but I have that on my to do list for when we get back home with all our children." Sami was slightly irritated at Chandler for making a big deal out of it. The voice, and the red hair were still things she knew were strange about her. That, and the fabulous butt that EJ was learning to appreciate better each night!

"I have an idea, this may make it easier for us to disguise you and EJ as my assistants. EJ is just too recognizable anyway, but someone might put two and two together if you appear with him too often. After all, there has been lots of publicity about the two of you and your celebrated marriage."

"Just what is your idea Chandler, Samantha and I are willing to do anything".

Tears rolled down Samis eyes as her beautiful hair hit the floor. Within minutes, she was bald, and using her hand to feel the slickness of her head. Harris stepped back to look, the clippers still in his hand. He felt her pain, and was so awfully sorry.

"Aww. Sami, I am sorry, but it is just 'air, and it will grow back ya know".

"Now EJ, it is your turn". Chandler pointed to the chair as she saw the hesitation in his face, and his hand steal up to run through the lushness of his brunette hair.

"Christ Man! It is only 'air and it will grow back, now sit yourself down here and act like a man!" With EJ, Harris was not sympathetic.


	3. Chapter 3

**Day 10**

EJ spread out the equipment Chandler was getting him and Sami familiar with. If they were to be going in as her video and sound people, they needed to know how to operate the system. Harris did not have to use much of his expertise, he was going to shoot people if necessary, and drive the car. These were things he was already skilled at.

Chandler had persuaded the minister to let them in for one day this week to familiarize themselves with the routine of the prison, and another day for the actual filming. To him it was good she had asked for the separation of days, he wanted this film to show his government in a good light. Chandler was actually getting quite excited about the whole idea now, as she still had issues with how the system treated women prisoners.

Sami listened as Chandler explained things such as router switcher, transmission specifications, how to designate the color signals so the picture was sharp. until her head felt like it would burst. All the while, she tried to keep from glancing in the mirror at her head.

When Chandler finally left to go to her own room to change before they left for the prison, she walked over to look at her reflection. EJ came up behind her to put a hand on her shoulder.

"I look hideous, don't I?" but he turned her to face him.

"How can you say that to me? You are beautiful, and I will never see you as anything but beautiful..right now you are doing everything in your power to get our son back, and that is the most beautiful thing I can imagine. For you to think I see you any differently for the lack of a few locks of hair that are going to be back before you know it is is silly Samantha. In fact, I think you look rather exotic..and as for me..well I look devilishly handsome this way, don't you agree?" he preened a moment before telling her, "Come on put the rest of your disguise on", and he gave her a couple of stick on facial hair items.

When she had placed the stick on goatee and moustache on, she turned to him and playfully pulled him into a kiss from which he came up sputtering, spitting synthetic hairs out of his mouth. 

"Damnit, Samantha, kissing a bearded lady is just a little too much! Save it until we get back tonight and you are clean shaven again" but the tension was broken and they were both seeing the humor and laughing once again.

They all pulled up in front of the gates at Bayranpusa at three minutes before seven. EJ and Sami pulled the camera and sound equipment out with an experts ease. Chandler had been able to give them a very good tutorial, and figured she could get them through most situations making them seem professional.

Minister Agrazian met them, and took Chandlers hand in a gesture of the continental gentleman, kissing it, and EJ made sure to get it on camera. He flashed his credentials at the guard, who checked his roster, and pushed a button to open the first set of gates. Sami made use of her camera, which also was feeding into the car where Harris sat waiting. He was also examining the prison for any signs of weakness as the signal came back to him. 

The womens block was on the second floor, above the dining and exercise area. Chandler made sure to compliment on camera the cleanliness and order of the facility so far seen. Agrazian beamed. The second set of locked doors was opened, and they were led into the womens prison common area.

Some women wore the traditional Arab abaya, while others wore jump suits in a gray loose cotton. EJ and Sami looked to see if they could spot Kristen. She was rather obvious, towering over most of the other woman by a good foot. Her hair was white now, but still thick and lustrous. She sat in the middle of a group of women, and she seemed to be a leader or some sort, as she held their attention as she read aloud to them.

"Who is that?" Chandler pointed to her, knowing who it was, but wanting to hear what Agrazian would say about her.

"She is Kristen Blake, an American who was caught in an extortion attempt. She now teaches the women here in math and science. If she were not a prisoner, I would think her a very nice lady"

"I want to speak with her.."Chandler made it sound like a demand, not a request, and Agrazian knew he must comply. He had too much on the line to be obstinate.

"No film, but you may speak". He made his offer.

"That will do..for now!"Chandler waited as a guard was dispatched to bring Kristen over.

"Kristen Blake, nice to meet with you, I am Chandler Loring, I work with Mythic Communications, the Phoenix Division, and we are doing a documentary on women in Turkish Prisons and how the conditions have improved with the entrance of Turkey into the European sphere of influence. I understand you are American, so talking with you would be of tremendous help to me and my colleagues."

Upon hearing the word Phoenix, Kristen had smiled. "So the old bastard finally decided to dig me out of this hell hole" was what went through her mind, but out of her mouth came the words "How kind of you to do this, I want people to know this has been a positive experience for me, the justice system in this country has helped me to see the errors of my ways."

The transfer of the diamonds was the tricky part of this days work. Kristen would need something to bribe guards and the other women with. The diversion was created by Sami, she had wandered over to the gathering of women, and in a complete undoing of the cultural norm, she had sat down among them, aiming the camera at them sitting around sewing or chatting. The scandal created by a man sitting down with the women brought screams of outrage, and the guard looking at Chandler and Kristen turned his head for the moment it took Chandler to put them into Kristens pockets before running over to quell the trouble Sami had stirred up!

**Day 9**

Ace took out his crayon and marked off another day on the calendar page. He had hoped when he woke up this morning Mom would have returned already, but when he saw the duenna taking Liam from his crib he knew he would have to go another day. It was not so bad, he got to play with Liam, swim in the pool, and had even learned to fish with Bart. So why did he act like such a baby and night, when he would think about the big house where he had his brother and sisters, and the little dog, Inky? He missed the being tucked into bed by his very tall father, and the stories he had been read to by Mom and Dad. It felt right to him to think of them as Mom and Dad now, but it saddened him too. Missing them was what made him cry, and he hated to cry. It hurt. He was ready to go home.

Sami woke when the haze of sunrises rosy light crossed over her eyes. She got up and walked to the window overlooking the bay, and in the blue of the sea she saw her sons eyes as they were when he had looked at her with such trust the day she had left. His calendar would be full of 'x's now, she knew. He was such a faithful little guy, and she knew he would be watching out for Liam as well.

Today was the day all the film they had managed to take of the prison was to be spliced and reviewed for all the weaknesses they had found. Harris was not encouraged by what he had first seen, but he knew there was always a weakness. He knew there was never anything foolproof. Sometimes all it took was enough money, or enough cajones to take the risks that were part of the job. He had always been willing. EJ was a bit more cautious, but now the pot odds were too high, this was for Ace and Liam.

"Hey, lady, why are you awake so early? The sun is barely up." His arms went round her, and his lips kissed the shiny area of her bald head. She did not move away, as she no longer felt any shame in the state of her head. It was a badge of courage to her now, she had given up what was really a vanity in order to save her son. If it had been her right arm, she knew now that would have been given up as well.

"I was thinking how he must be so worried, this much time is an eternity to a child. Remember how long Christmas always took to come? We are his Christmas EJ, we are the only thing in his life that has promised any constancy, and look what is happening? What if we fail? I will have lied to him about coming back! He will never trust anyone again!"

EJ put his arms on her shoulders and whirled her about to face him.

"We are not going to fail. In five days we will have that woman out of that prison! We already have the boat ready, and we will sail out of that harbor on the Fancy Face II, Bo is coming in, everything is a go. You just make sure you do what we ask you, no questions asked, no second guessing of Harris or I. Samantha, I cannot fail Ace, I cannot fail you! So don't think about anything else except maybe this" he put his lips to hers in a kiss not of passion, but of commitment. He had never seen Samantha have a lack of confidence in him, and it bothered him to sense it now. When he felt her lips return his kiss, he knew her trust was returning. He vowed it would not be misplaced.

It was a long afternoon in the suite, Harris ran and re wound the video taken until all were sick of it, but he kept doing it, and every once in a while would pause it, as he put his face close to the screen checking out a detail he had missed before.

Chandler kept busy writing the questions she wanted Agrazian to answer on the video, and practicing her Arabic and Kurdish so she would be able to ask questions of the other women. Chandler was a natural linguist, and had studied these languages for her job as a foreign correspondent several years back. She had known it was going to be a hot spot for journalists, and when she had been more adventurous she had figured it would come in handy. Now, all she wanted was to live out her days in Salem, and be happy with Harris and raise her family.

For EJ, there was still business to keep on track. He was busily using the laptop to maintain contact with Matthew, asking him how things were running at Mythic. EJ never took his finger off the pulse of his business, and he had people in charge who knew his style, and anticipated his needs.

Sami was bored, she had nothing to do now that she had convinced them that she knew her part. It was not the right time of day to call the children, they would be asleep. It seemed everyone else was occupied, so she slipped on a pair of the mens trousers they had her wearing to convince everyone she was a man, her white jacket, and went out the door, unnoticed by the others in their preoccupation with their own tasks.

Sitting in the hotel lobby, she looked at the cell phone, debating whether or not to make this call. It was very early back home in Salem, and it would definitely be intrusive. The times that her mother had been held by Kristen in that small cell in her very own home were a disturbing thought to her. The DiMera mansion was now just a family home, full of love and laughter, but it had once been something very different. The place where her mother had been held captive..by a woman they now had to free in order to save their son. It had to be, but Sami felt that Marlena might need to know. John would want to see that Marlena was properly protected. Sami felt the same way. Kristen must not be allowed to be a danger to Marlena. Stefano could have his foster daughter, Ace and Liam would be returned, and peace would reign. That is what Sami prayed for.

"John, I am sorry to wake you, but I have to tell you something!:

**Day 8**

Rushing out the door to get to her office Marlena bumped into John, and plate of toast and jams he had been bringing to her landed partially on the rug, and partially on the suit she was wearing. It was the suede suit that Sami had sent her from Las Vegas as a peace offering. This was the first time it had been worn. As Marlena saw the dollops of jam plopping down from one part of the lapel to the blouse underneath, finally ending up on the last button she sighed. The alarm hadn't gone off, John was already out of bed, she had early appointments, she had misplaced one of the patients files..not a good start, now she had to change. What else could go wrong today?

"Hey, doc, what's the hurry? Go back up and change, let me fix you a little bit of tea and some toast now." She really had no choice but to change, and to call her office and tell them she was running late. She changed her blazer to a black one, and the blouse to a simple tan sweater one coordinating with the slacks.

"Ok Doc, here you go, wheat toast, lightly buttered, orange marlemade, and some English breakfast tea..one lump, no milk. That's right isn't it?"

"Yes..it is" she smiled across at him, her eyes going all squinty in the way that melted his heart. 'Who was that on the phone so early this morning.? It was still dark out!"

"Sami G., all the way from Istanbul Turkey!" waiting to hear how Marlena would take that news, he sipped his coffee.

"John, EJ found her! She got away from Stefano? What about Ace, Liam? Are they coming home soon?"

"In a word, no. I guess I better let you know what Sami and EJ are up to. I do not think you will like it much, but hear me out, they do have a good reason!"

"No! No! No! John you stop them right now! That woman should never see the light of day again! How can they even think of doing such a thing, and it is dangerous to them as well!" When John had gotten to the part of EJ and Sami breaking Kristen out of jail, Marlenas dreamy little girl smile became a panicked cry of enraged fear.

'Doc, Doc, I would never let anything happen to you..please don't worry about it. Kristen will have enough to do just getting her life together. Middle East Prisons are not Club Fed havens, she probably has suffered quite a bit."

"How on earth can you take her side in this, you remember what she did to me? To you? To that poor Susan?" Marlena had heard enough. She grabbed her purse and left, slamming the door behind her, not looking back.

Philip was bringing Victor to the hospital for his exercise assessment. Hana, as always walked next to Victor. He refused to go anywhere without her to the great annoyance of Phillip. Her long abaya and hijab face covering embarrassed him, but his father seemed to find comfort in her presence, and always insisted she be there. Phillip had scratched off the May 15 date in his PDA for dealing with her long since. His father would have to be completely healed first.

"Whoa, Marlena, what's the matter?" Victor held out an arm to stop her from running into him.

"Sorry, Victor, I am running late and am just upset a bit I guess, excuse me please."

Victor looked at Phillip, "when is the last time you checked her and Johns phone tap?"

"Uh sorry, Pop, I have been preoccupied..I will as soon as we get back home."

"You imbecile..I said keep informed! What is wrong with her? If it is something we should know about, damnit, we should already have known. Cant' you get the simplest things right?"

The moon in Istanbul was shining on the bed of EJ and Sami. She had needed him that night as never before. He had been surprised with her pushing him onto the bed, and lying atop him, not letting him speak, just kissing him into his own form of submission, until he gave her what she wanted. Forgetfulness. He made her forget she was not the child of parents who put her before everything, but did that for her sisters. He made her forget she was the one not worthy of fighting for, for to him her and the children were the only prizes worth fighting for, He made her feel that way, and she knew he would never change.

It had been a long day, Harris had drawn up all the diagrams. They had gone to a park and rehearsed out every step, making passerbys curious as to what these four were doing with all their running, and rolling about. To them, it looked like an elaborate game. To Harris, this was plan B. The one he desperately hoped would remain Plan B.

As they lay exhausted, in each others arms, each of them remained silent within their separate thoughts, but united by the fears each one had. To die was not the worst thing, for death would end their suffering, but to remain alive, and end up in this same prison, separated from each other and the family they were trying to unite would be the worst. All they could hope was that things would go well enough to fool the officials for the time it would take to get Kristen out of the prison, onto one of the Vespas parked nearby, and down to the pier Bo would be waiting at. It had all been written out, and Sami and Chandler had taken to riding the Vespa on the route it would take, one that could not be followed by the police vehicles of Istanbul.

It was a finely detailed as they could get it, but then again, the devil was always in the details.

**Day 7**

"Boss, would you lookie that boy swim, he is a fish in the water!" Bart looked out as Ace, who had tired of the onboard pool would jump from the second deck out into the sea, then swim over to the launch ramp to climb back up. He had no fear, and Stefano looked on him in approval.

"He will be a fine addition to our family! Our legacy will never die with such as him in control" Stefano waved to the boy, who looked up and waved back, before jumping again.

"Now Boss, we have six more days for Sami and EJ to get Kristen out of that prison, they might do it you know!"

"Either way, Bart I win. If I get Kristen back, she can finish things off for me so I can finally turn off that blasted machine, and if they fail, I have Ace and Liam" Stefano finished the tea sitting next to the crayon Ace had left on the table. The calendar was faithfully marked off, leaving only five days after this one.

He reached over to chuck under the chin of the little one sitting in the round walker playing with the colored beads on the rack in front of him. Liam looked at him, smiled his one toothed grin, before getting back to the task of moving the beads from one side to the other. He applied himself to his little task as seriously as Stefano did to controlling and evaluating the toys in his life.

"You heard me right, I want the first flight to Istanbul, whatever you have available!" She had bags packed, her passport documents in her hand, and Marlena was cursing the incompetence of a travel agent who could not get a simple thing like this done in five minutes. Looking at her watch, she knew John would be walking into the penthouse almost any minute, and she wanted these arrangements finalized now!

"That will be perfect, I will take the flight out of New York in six hours, layover in Heathrow for four, then on to Istanbul so I will be there tomorrow afternoon? Good, I am on my way to Salem Airport, arrange for my tickets to be waiting there for me. No..please..no electronic, I want to hand carry them!" Marlean knew John could use his connections to stymie her trip at any time, it was better to have paper tickets.

The man who tailed Marlena to the airport was quick to report back.

"Mr. Kiriakis, she just got on a plane to New York, but she may have another connection from there, you want I should take the same flight?"

"Yes, I want "you should take the same flight" Christ! Did I say follow her..that means you follow her..find out whatever you can and let me know right away!"

Kristen was using her last days in this hell hole to dream of how much freedom was going to mean to her. Revenge of course, but she did so look forward to even the simple things. The idea of a cup of hot chocolate, an egg, a fresh piece of fruit, underwear that had French silk and lace in them instead of the rough cotton prison issue

The years in the service of the Sheik were but a blur to her now. He had learned from her a way to increase his wealth, but he had not been grateful. The new woman who had found favor with him wanted her out of the way, so he had sent Kristen to take a bribe to a Kurdistani official , then made sure she was found out. He disavowed all knowledge of her, and no one believed her, she had not even been allowed legal council. Her fifteen year sentence was considered light, after all she was a Westerner.

It was like the Sheiks new woman was another Marlena, and soon she had been discarded just as John had done to her all those years ago. Her former life as a social worker had helped her get by within the walls of Bayranpusa. She had begun teaching the women, enjoying the ability to feel as though her actions mattered. She once had been proud of herself, until she had the misfortune to fall in love with a faithless man. A man who would not remain faithful to his vows to a church, or his vows to her as a wife. John was weak willed of course, she knew that now. Marlena, though, Marlena was a woman who did not care about anyones needs and wants but herself. The thought of finally giving Marlena a chance to feel what real suffering was like made her look forward to freedom even more!

EJ shook Samantha awake, her nightmare had brought him out of a sound sleep, as he felt her shaking, flailing her arms about, and finally saying, "Mother!", when she came to enough to realize the nightmare was over, she was clinging to EJ, while he patted her back in soothing circle motions. He would comfort Jessica the same way, and Sami found herself relaxing against his strong chest as their little girl always did.

"What is it my darling, what did you dream?" his voice was a solicitious and soft as the one he used on Jessica, and Sami looked up at his face, holding it now in both her hands.

"It was my mother, I could see her in this horrible black hole, crying for me, or John, or anyone to come and help her. I saw her, and I walked away..EJ I left her there crying out for me..what is wrong with me! How could I do that to her?"

"Samantha, it was just a dream, probably some unresolved issue, but I know you, you would never turn your back on her, no matter what she has done to you." He circled her into his arms, and went on, "You are the bravest, most spirited creature on this earth to me, you are my Amazon Queen...if you found your mother in that kind of situation, there is nothing that would stop you from getting to her..that is you, Samantha, and I am sorry your mother does not know that about you! But I do, my darling, I do." His hands came up to stroke the head, bereft of the shining halo of hair that had been a hallmark of her beauty. One more sacrifice to the power of the love she was capable of.

**Day 6**

Marlena was right, almost the moment he first knew she had left without telling him where or why, John was tracing her movements.

"Damnit, Doc, what do you think you are up to?" but he knew, she was scared to death of the idea of Kristen being released, and was determined somehow to stop it. Since he knew her ultimate stop would be Istanbul, he was in the air in his own jet within a couple of hours. He figured from all the flights she could have taken, no matter what flight plan he put together, he could beat any international flight she was on. Also he planned on using his ISA contacts to slow her up, while he offered any assistance he could to EJ and Sami. Those two children had more reason to worry than his wife did.

Kristen had paced back and forth in the cell she was sharing with two other women, continually looking out the small window to guage the time by the position of the sun in the sky over Istanbul. She had despaired of Chandler and the small bald man coming as she saw the shadow of the building lengthen which mean it was around four in the afternoon. They had visited her daily, for the past three days, and each time the small man had shed an item of clothing, hidden from the guards sight by the women who huddled around the visitors. The bribe had bought their help, many times over. The small man had worn an identical item of clothing under the pieces he shed, but it had to be done so quickly, there was not time in one visit to give Kristen a full set of the clothing. Now they would hope shoes would not be noticed, as there was no way to bring those in. Prison issue shoes consisted of a simple thong.

Kristen had begun the process of chopping off her own hair, until today it was less than an inch long all around. When the guards had laughed, she had simply given them the indication of "head lice", and they had nodded in understanding. It was a common problem, but most of the women would rather have cut off their hands than their hair. She planned to finish the job, then use the burnt wood from the cooking fires to blacken some of the hair to use as a fake beard. Her way out was to become Sam, the assistant to Chandler. "Sam" would later be found, bound and gagged, a poor unwitting accomplice to an escape masterminded by the treacherous newswoman, Chandler Loring.

"How much do you have left?" Chandler needed to know if Kristen was using the diamonds as they was meant to be used. It would do her no good to hoard it, if a guard was to be bribed to look the other way. The women of the cell and the cell block were important too..they had to know there was more coming if they cooperated, so it would do them no good to double cross Kristen..

"I have plenty, what I have spent in here is enough for most of these women to buy their own way out of here once I am gone. They know to keep their mouths shut. Beside, they all like me..I tell wonderful stories!" Kristen did keep the women entertained with her stories of the Demon Lady Marlena, the Black John, or her father, King Stefano!

During these visits, EJ and Sami tried to be as unobtrusive as possible, they were only there to record, not report. Sami, however could not resist edging closer to hear the things Kristen talked about to Chandler. She had been a young girl when Kristen had done horrible things to her mother, this was the time when she had been urged by the devil in Marlena to win Austin by drugging him, then masquerading as Carrie to have sex with him. Sami remembered and thought to herself, "man was I one mixed up kid!" It was not long after Kristen had helped John in getting Marlena back to herself that Kristens life had been turned upside down. Losing a baby, then the love of John had turned her into a sick twisted woman.

Kristens interview with Chandler was now the story of a woman who had been through a lot, someone who had lost love, and with it her own sense of her humanity.

EJ watched Samantha with a growing concern. He saw she grew disquieted the more Kristen revealed.

"The first year, I was kept as a slave in a harem. A slave is not given the same stature as a harem girl, for a harem girl is a concubine of the sheikh. I was a sexual plaything for any guest or dignitary who visited. I was used by several Senators from the States. The good thing was, I became very popular among the harem women. I was good at doing hair and makeup, and I had a developed sense of style. Finally, I caught the notice of the Sheikh. Hair and makeup were not the only things I was good at.

His oil revenue was not coming in as it should, I spotted how he was being cheated. I saved him millions, and became his most valued concubine. Until the other one came, and she disposed of me very quickly. You know the type, saintly, virtuous, but hiding the knife under their shirt until they strike. She got rid of me, but I arranged for her to be taken care of before I left. I still have loyal people under me too. I think she may have been thrown down a well..or not." Kristen smiled, and it was a smile that made the three others ready to help her make her escape wonder what they may have been turning loose upon the world.

Harris once more looked out over the prison gate system. He made it a habit to stand and talk a bit in friendly banter with the guards. He kept a supply of American cigarettes to use to break the ice. When offered one in return, the non smoking Harris would cough and point to his throat, which relieved them of the burden of giving up any of their booty. He found he could lean up against the bricks, and easily slip a bit of the plastique into the cracks of mortar. It was set with a small battery, and would be set off by a cell phone signal, but again, this was plan b, and he hoped it remained so.

**Day 5**

Marlena woke to the whine of the jet engines just before landing in Istanbul.. All the legs of the flight had been exhausting, no time to really sleep before catching another flight, and running through long airport concourses with minutes to spare had exhausted her. Almost everything that could go wrong had, ticket snafus she could never have foreseen kept her delayed at every turn, almost as if it had been orchestrated. No matter, her persistence and forceful personality had made every ticket agent cow, and just reissue the lost reservations. She was thankful no flights had been fully booked, but she had not been able to get into business class, so she had found herself cramped much of the time in coach.

She had hurried through customs, this time at least with no problems, not like when she had left London. Grabbing a cart, she had made for the baggage carousel, for the third time wishing she had managed to pack enough in just the carry on.

As her powder blue wheeled case came around, she felt herself pushed aside, as a pair of broad shouldered arms picked it up for her, sitting it down by his feet.

"Nice try Doc!".John raised the eyebrow at her, and took her by the arm, leading her out to the car that waited.

He was angrier with her than he could ever remember being in his whole life with her. She had taken off without telling him, and was planning to disrupt her daughters plan to save her child from a life being raised by Stefano.

"Why Marlena?" he put her suitcase on the bed, unzipping it to do her unpacking for her as she sat looking at him.

"I am surprised you have to ask. Kristen is dangerous, always has been. You know that."

"Kristen is going to be delivered to Stefano in order to get Ace and Liam back. She will not be after you or us. You are safe!"

"How can you be sure? How do we even know Stefano will give those kids back? We can't take this chance!" her voice grew desperate as she tried to make him listen to reason.

"Well, no matter, it will all be over in a few days, and you are staying with me here, once she is out, we can leave!" giving her no option to change his mind, John walked over to her, slipped one end of a handcuff on her wrist, and the other onto his. "Now, how about we just stay in, watch some television, and have a little fun.."

Ace had found some new friends out in the water! For the past couple of days, he had visitors who delighted him with their antics. A pod of Mediterranean dolphins had been attracted to his splashing about, and kept coming into his swim area, closer and closer to him, until one had actually put his nose up to the boy, letting him pet him. Ace had chortled, promptly dubbing the dolphin as Inky, after the little dog at home. The bodyguard assigned to him at first was concerned, but even he grew amused as he watched the growing affinity the pod, and especially the one dolphin had for the child. He found himself taking video of it to amuse the big boss with when he was awake. The swim time became the favorite activity of Ace, who soon learned to imitate the trilling sounds of the dolphins which brought them swimming over quickly as he stood and made the clickety sounds with his tongue and teeth.

When swim time was over, Ace would come up to spend time with Liam, pushing him about in the circular walker. Ace knew it caused the duennas no end of worry as Ace would race with the baby around the promenade, but Stefano made them let them be. They needed each other and what harm could come of it.

Bo and Shawn had flown back to pick up the Fancy Face II, but to finish the commitment that had to Sami and EJ, they had promised to help deliver Kristen to the yacht Celeste when the trade for the boys were to be made. It was two days before they would make Istanbul Harbor and they were enjoying the time with each other. The two of them sailed along with just a quiet enjoyment of being together as father and son, but knowing they were about to do something wonderful for someone who had once done something wonderful for them.

Samantha picked at the food, making EJ look at the plate to see if it was anything he ordered that she did not like. Her scarf round her head gave her a gypsy look, and brought out the blue of her eyes with a brilliance he found enchanting. The large hoop earrings made the gypsy like effect even more striking, and he saw the appreciative glances other men in the restaurant were giving her.

"You need to eat Samantha, you get any thinner we shall have to buy you new trousers, and our budget is not set up for that!" His smile at her was meant to show the humor of his words, but she was not understanding.

"Are we out of money? Don't we have enough to finish this?" Her worry about everything, even the cost of a pair of trousers made him laugh.

"Never fear on that score."He poured her out another glass of wine, and cutting a piece of cheese, opening her mouth himself to pop it in.

"I keep having the dream EJ, about Mom. Do you think Kristen would ever try to hurt her?"

"I don't know, and right now, I can't care Samantha. Our concern is our son, you let John worry about Marlena, do you understand me?"

"EJ, I tried to call her today..her office said she has gone out of the country..John never said anything about her going anywhere when I spoke with him the other day..I can't help it EJ, I am worried."

"Hmm." Was all EJ said, but the idea that Samantha had placed another call to both the house and the office was worrisome to him. With all they had done to keep their destination secret, he worried about someone tracing a call..it was not too hard to figure out who was held in the prison that might be of interest to the council..and anyone of interest to the council would have been of interest to Stefano!

**Day 4**

Chandler spent the morning going over the equipment check list. All the filming being done this day would be the lynchpin of the events that were scheduled to take place tomorrow. This film would be the proof of Sami and EJ's seeming innocence to the authorities, the dates had been changed on it to fool anyone looking at it for clues of what happened.

After checking and rechecking it again, she finally decided she had done all she could do. Harris gave her a reassuring smile, and went to pull her into his arms. Everything they had pulled together was either going to work, and by this time tomorrow they would be heading out to sea to meet up with Stefanos yacht and retrieve their baby, or they would probably never see him again. Since that thought was too harsh, all they could do to comfort themselves was to make love in the morning once more, then shower and dress to meet Sami and EJ downstairs.

John did not at first realize what the sting in his arms was, until he looked up at Doc, her dreamy squinty smile as she looked down upon him was making him all warm and fuzzy until he realized it was the hypodermic she was sticking in his arm that had done it. He tried to smile back at her before he went fast asleep.

"John, I have to make sure we are protected from Kristen. I must do this, but now you are in no condition to stop me. Ahh.. yes the keys are where you always put them, good John, now you just rest. I have an appointment with a Turkish police commander, he is probably going to ve very interested in what I have to say about Kristen Blake Black!" She headed out the door to her rendevous.

Stefano had the yacht weigh anchor about seven mile out from the entrance to Golden Horn Harbor of Istanbul. As he had done for the days since Ace and the dolphins had started up their antics, he was sitting in the afternoon sun, watching and being highly entertained by the spectacle of the small boy grasping a fin of one of the animals and being towed about. The animals seemed to be lining up for a turn at this trick and it was absolutely fascinating to watch. One of his men who had grown up on one of the nearby islands told of how the dolphins of the Mediterranean were known for many tales of saving people from drowning. To Stefano the tales were entertaining but far fetched. Ace, however listened intently as the man spoke.

"Dophins are my friend. They would save me!" Ace told that to Stefano in his matter of fact way, as he munched on the pieces of melon on the tray. His towel was gripped in his hand, as he waited for the duenna to take him down to change and have dinner with Liam. Within that towel was the set of keys he had picked up when the cabin boy had been careless enough to leave them in the door of the room where all the spare safety gear for the yachts guests were kept, including life buoys, and life jackets. As Ace picked up his crayon to mark off another day, counting only three now until Mom came for him, he had decided in his mind on his own form of Plan B.

The police commissar sat as Marlena burst into his office, not even waiting for his clerk to give her formal announcement. This was extremely bad manners, and when she began her story, he had been prepared to kick her out immediately until she said the name Stefano DiMera. This caught his interest. Everyone in this part of the world had heard of the man, he was infamous, as well as fascinating. He spoke just enough English to be interested in the tale of the possible escape of a prisoner from Bayrpunsan Prison to be highly amused, except when she added the fact that this Kristen Blake was a daughter of Stefano DiMera..this got his attention.

"Good, I am glad you understand, now take me to her so I may speak with her, I have to stop this, do you understand? We have to make her confess to what she is up to! The rest of them have no idea what she will do once she makes an escape..it would be horrid!" Marlena was not thinking of a grandchild she really had no connection with, she was worried about herself, and about John. Her story was compelling enough that the commissar did agree to go with her to the prison. This could be most interesting. It made him angry to realize he had a daughter of Stefano DiMera within his control for these past few years, and he knew nothing about it. It could have been quite lucrative. He made the call to see that Kristen would be taken into a private interview room, then took Marlenas arm to lead her to a car which would drive them there.

Kristen sat quietly in the room she was led into. This had not been part of the plan they had discussed, and she wondered what had gone wrong. The breath left her body as she saw the face that had lived in her dreams all these years.

"You! Have you come to gloat? Well go ahead, do your worst, but you may have made the worst mistake of you life in coming here today." Then Kristen turned to the police commissar and addressed him in Turkish.

"Rice etmek svemek commissar?" which was "Do you know who I am?" and he nodded with a smile. That told Kristen all she needed to hear.

Marlena heard the betrayal in both voices,but was given to time to act, as the blow from a nightstick he had carried in hit her square on the back of the head. As she lay crumpled on the floor, Kristen brought forth as payment for his help three of the diamonds. This was an absolute bargain, as the two of them discussed how Marlena would now take her place in the cell, but not that cell. She would be remanded to the "hole" the place set aside for prisoners suspected of trying to escape, bribe guards, or other things not tolerated in this prison. Her time in the hole would be up to one year, and by that time, when or if the deception were uncovered, she would either be dead or mad!

Exchanging clothes with Marlena, Kristen had reveled in the feel of the silk blouse and the well tailored skirt. Her hair, or lack of, she covered with the scarf that Marlena had accessorized her outfit with. A guard was bribed with another diamond, and soon Marlenas still unconscious body was being carted down to the hole, her prison uniform with Kristens number on it hanging shapelessly on her form.

It was not ten minutes after she and the commissar were speeding off together that the trio pulled up to enter the building for this days filming.

The guard refused them entrance. There would be no more filming. It had been revealed that the prisoner they had been working with was bribing guards, and it they did not wish to be involved in that, they had better leave immediately!

Sami turned white, nearly collapsing against EJ, but held herself in check. Chandler grasped the hand of Harris squeezing until she stopped the blood flow. He did not pull away.

**Day 3**

Kristen dug through Marlenas purse, finally finding what she wanted. Her itinerary with her hotel name, and looking further, she found the room pass card.

"Truly is my lucky day!" as she gave the cab driver the address. Her fluency in the Turkish language had been learned in the prison, and while it was not the refined accent one would find in the upper classes, it served well enough to speak with the driver. She paid him with the lira she found in Marlenas wallet, and ran into the hotel.

John was just waking up from the effects of the drug when he found the power to focus in on the woman standing over him, as she pulled made sure his handcuff was on once again, and hooked to the bed post.

"I am so glad to see you again John, you don't know how much you have been on my mind all these years!" she spied Marlenas medical bag and saw that she still had several hypodermic needles loaded up with medication, as well as two she had found in her handbag.

"I think your lovely demon of a wife planned on killing me today!" Kristen looked at the dosage that was in the syringe, "there is enough in here to stop an elephant in its tracks..but you know John, she just did not know enough about how to play the game in these countries..things are done differently here..You pay to play, get my drift?" She aspirated the syringe, and came towards him, smiling menacingly. "Time to settle old scores Johnny boy, sleep tight!" and the plunger was pushed all the way into his arm to dispense the medicine. John knew he was going to die, and as he drifted off, all he could think of was his beloved Doc..

Once in the safety of the car, Sami had clung helplessly to EJ, and he had clung just as tightly. It was impossible to know what had gone wrong, why had Kristen been caught?

Harris dug beneath the seat to find the guns he had stashed. The blueprints to the prison were also taken from the cardboard tube to be studied.

"Is Bo in the harbor with the speedboat yet?" EJ was on the cell phone with Shawn. He was hoping that Bo would have gone in a bit earlier, as the Plan B scenario was about to be put in play. Shawn was affirmative in that, Bo had wanted to make sure he scoped out the best way to outrun any harbor patrol.

EJ put on the bullet proof vest, handed one to Harris, as they both donned them. Sami reached for one, and EJ looked at her harshly," You do not need this, you and Chandler just circle around the block once, and if we are not out when you get back, go on without us!"

"I am going in with you, you need someone else to help keep her in line..Harris will be busy doing the detonations..once we are inside the guards don't even have guns..I can help EJ, I have to!"

"I don't want you hurt!"

"EJ, I cant get my son back unless we do this, we are not going to fail..I will have your back, and you will have mine..like it was meant to be.." her eyes met his, and he knew she was right.

"Ok, Harris, just start the detonations as we get to the guard shack..they will run for them, we will get inside then..after that, just keep spraying them..keep them down or running while Sami and I make it down to the hole. We should be back up in ten minutes or less..if not, get going!"

The explosions started right on time, and EJ and Sami went almost unnoticed into the inner prison. The first guard that stopped them was felled by a quick burst of EJ's gun, and Sami quickly removed the mans guard shirt to put on over her own jeans. From that point, she had put EJ in front of her, his hands up like a prisoner being led down, as guards from below had run up to see what the commotion was about. The discipline in the prison was lax, which was one of the factors they had counted most on.

The lowest level was dark, damp and smelling of mold and must. The one guard who had stayed behind stood up to question them in loud Turkish! Sami had shrugged, then put the gun into EJ's hands as the poor guard was hit soundly by the butt of the gun. Taking his flashlight, EJ turned it on into the small cell that was only locked by a huge sliding bolt. When the door was opened, he quickly picked up the prone body, put it over his shoulders in a firemans carry, and was up the stairs, Sami preceding him to cover him.

Harris had been spraying the yard with a firestorm of bullets, and every so often signaling for one of the hidden detanators to go off. By the time he had only one left to set off, he saw them coming! "Oh God Chandler hurry!" and his prayer was answered as the sedan pulled up to where he was standing and shooting from. In the distance, the howl of the oncoming sirens was heading up the hill from Istanbul, when the three dived into the car, carrying their prize as the doors to the car shut. EJ and Sami turned to look at the face of the still unconscious woman in his arms.

"Mother! Oh my God!"

There was no time to figure out what had happened, only time to drive down the winding road and get to the harbor. Sami was holding her mothers head, and trying to slap her into consciousness when finally her eyes opened up and she looked at Sami with a wan smile.

"I could not let you do it, I had to stop you Sami. That woman must never go free, no matter what"

"Mother what did you do?" Sami was hissing, as she knew somehow John had told her the plan, and her own mother had interceded to stop them from saving Ace.

"John..where is John" Is he alright?"

"Doctor Evans, it seems Kristen has traded identities with you, so if there was anything on you that would have led her to where John is, I think you better let me call and warn him". EJ called her by her professional name, his voice as cold as ice. He was sure if Samantha had not been here, he would gladly have strangled this woman with his bare hands.

"Hotel Sofa, room 345.." the urgency of EJ's voice convinced Marlena, and she was starting to remember all that had happened.

No one answered the room, but when the hotel was told to enter and see if anyone needed assistance, John was found, and the police were called to take the drug overdosed American to hospital.

Marlena fought with them to take her to him, but EJ had silenced her with a solid slap, his face up to hers in a warning "You are going with us, and if you value your life, you are going to help us fool Stefano long enough for us to maybe get our children back. I am so tired of you putting yourself and your wants and needs ahead of so many of us, now you have no choice in wht you are going to do..is that clear?"

"Are you trying to threaten me?"

"Mother, he is telling you that you are going to do what we say. And I promise you this, if we fail in bringing back our sons because of what you have done today, I will help EJ kill you!" Samantha had already done murder for her children, killing this woman now would not even make her break a sweat. She had finally extinguished the faint ember that had remained of her affection for her mother.

The sirens had found the prison in a shambles, the guards running around dazed, but pointing towards the harbor as being where the sedan was headed.

Bo saw them running towards them, and he pulled alongside the pier, helping them each jump onboard. He had paid no attention until he had hit the throttle and headed toward the open sea before he noticed that the woman he thought was Kristen was actually Marlena! In the fifteen minutes it took to get to the Fancy Face II, he had been filled in on the story, and he could only look at Marlena with disillusionment. As they boarded the Fancy Face, and opened the sails, it was two hours to the rendevous point with the Celeste. What they would do when they got there was anyone's guess, it was a matter of how long they would be able to fool Stefano.

**Day 2**

It had been so long since she had felt this euphoric feeling of freedom! She knew could be a hunted woman by this time, but no matter. Selling part of the diamonds had proved to be no problem, so she had enough to buy passage out of Turkey, and with Marlenas passport, it had been a simple matter to exchange her documents for some very nice forgeries. The business man who made them for her had been delighted to get an original to help him in making other forgeries. It had been a mutually beneficial deal. Now Kristen walked out with documents proclaiming her to be an American citizen, by the name of Jordan Damerall, a name she felt proclaimed strength, but also acknowledged her heritage.

New clothing completed her outward image, and she took pleasure in burning the clothing of Marlenas she had been wearing. "I hope you get great pleasure out of having to reward the guards favors Marlena, or at least you will if you want to survive in that place." Revenge tasted sweet on her lips, and now that she had achieved it, nothing else needed to be done except make peace with her father.

"How do you propose we get close enough to Stefano's boat to try and storm it, you know he will not let the Fancy Face in that close, and he will be the one who sends a launch over to pick up our phony Kristen".

"You cannot put her in that launch, ..come on EJ, look at her, she will not fool anyone!" Harris was referring to a Marlena who was hunched into a ball in the corner. It seemed she finally had admitted to herself all the wrong she had done out of fear of Kristen. John was now in a hospital in Turkey, and it was taking a lot of intervention from EJ and Johns contacts to keep him from being charged with illegal drug usage. He had almost died, and the drugs that Marlena had been carrying were considered to be in his possession. Turkey had a policy of you were guilty until they could not prove you innocent. Things just ran so much smoother that way.

"We can't send her of course, but from a distance she may look the part, same height and build, coloring..if we can only get her to stand up and walk about the deck. When he sends the launch, we overpower the men on it, and make our play!" it was desperate, but to EJ it seemed the only way.

"I can make it look like the boat drifted a bit so they will have to come alongside out of sight of his yacht..that would help" Bo offered.

"Chandler and I are going to make her walk!" Sami said with a quiet determination, and with Chandler they went over to Marlenas little self imposed island of isolation.

"Get up, Doctor Evans, we need your help".

"I..I..yes, what do you need?" her whimpery voice was grating to both Chandler and Sami, two mothers who had to deal with a woman who had lost sight of what it was to love a child enough to sacrifice anything.

"Mother, we need you to be presentable and visible to that ship over there. Do you know who it belongs to? That is the Celeste, the yacht of Stefano DiMera, and right now my son and Chandlers baby boy are on that ship waiting for us to turn over Kristen Blake-Black to him. We don't have Kristen, all we have is you! ...Hey..there was a time he wanted you more than anything...wonder if that still is true..maybe we can make a deal after all.." Sami laughed cruelly, but when she saw the stark fear in her mothers eyes, she softened a bit.

"No, Mother, I would not do that, but God you tempt me sometimes!"

Chandler got to work, pinning up Marlenas hair, then putting a scarf over it, taking off the prison shirt, and pulling a sweater over the top half of the prison issue denims.

"Ok, now walk around the deck a bit Doctor Evans, all we want is for Stefano to observe you strutting, so he thinks we have Kristen onboard. We need him not to bolt now!"

The steward handed the binoculars over to Stefano, and he observed the figures on the boat anchored about a quarter mile away. They had radioed this was as close as they wanted to come, they were offering proof of life, and asked that he do the same.

"Show the children" Stefano ordered, and both Ace and Liam were lifted up above the railings. Sami and Chandler both took binoculars from EJ and Harris to look with relief at the sight of the babies.

"My God, Harris, he has gotten so big! And he has so much red hair now!" her voice caught, and she could not help crying, as it had been so long since he had been cradled in her arms. This cruel closeness was painful.

"Only one more day, love, one more day". Harris soothed her, but his thought was "If the bastard keeps his word!" 

Ace saw the little ship in the distance, and instinctively knew this was his Mom and Dad come for him. His calendar resided in his pocket, now down to the last day. She had kept her promise to him, and he waved out gaily to the boat letting her know he was ready!

"EJ, come look, he is waving to us! " EJ took the glasses from her and looked with pride upon the little guy who was such a stalward lad. He embraced Samantha and began to wave back, "We are here for you now Ace, you are our legacy, you are not part of some old family feud, and this is stopping now!"

**Day 2**

It had been so long since she had felt this euphoric feeling of freedom! She knew could be a hunted woman by this time, but no matter. Selling part of the diamonds had proved to be no problem, so she had enough to buy passage out of Turkey, and with Marlenas passport, it had been a simple matter to exchange her documents for some very nice forgeries. The business man who made them for her had been delighted to get an original to help him in making other forgeries. It had been a mutually beneficial deal. Now Kristen walked out with documents proclaiming her to be an American citizen, by the name of Jordan Damerall, a name she felt proclaimed strength, but also acknowledged her heritage.

New clothing completed her outward image, and she took pleasure in burning the clothing of Marlenas she had been wearing. "I hope you get great pleasure out of having to reward the guards favors Marlena, or at least you will if you want to survive in that place." Revenge tasted sweet on her lips, and now that she had achieved it, nothing else needed to be done except make peace with her father.

"How do you propose we get close enough to Stefano's boat to try and storm it, you know he will not let the Fancy Face in that close, and he will be the one who sends a launch over to pick up our phony Kristen".

"You cannot put her in that launch, ..come on EJ, look at her, she will not fool anyone!" Harris was referring to a Marlena who was hunched into a ball in the corner. It seemed she finally had admitted to herself all the wrong she had done out of fear of Kristen. John was now in a hospital in Turkey, and it was taking a lot of intervention from EJ and Johns contacts to keep him from being charged with illegal drug usage. He had almost died, and the drugs that Marlena had been carrying were considered to be in his possession. Turkey had a policy of you were guilty until they could not prove you innocent. Things just ran so much smoother that way.

"We can't send her of course, but from a distance she may look the part, same height and build, coloring..if we can only get her to stand up and walk about the deck. When he sends the launch, we overpower the men on it, and make our play!" it was desperate, but to EJ it seemed the only way.

"I can make it look like the boat drifted a bit so they will have to come alongside out of sight of his yacht..that would help" Bo offered.

"Chandler and I are going to make her walk!" Sami said with a quiet determination, and with Chandler they went over to Marlenas little self imposed island of isolation.

"Get up, Doctor Evans, we need your help".

"I..I..yes, what do you need?" her whimpery voice was grating to both Chandler and Sami, two mothers who had to deal with a woman who had lost sight of what it was to love a child enough to sacrifice anything.

"Mother, we need you to be presentable and visible to that ship over there. Do you know who it belongs to? That is the Celeste, the yacht of Stefano DiMera, and right now my son and Chandlers baby boy are on that ship waiting for us to turn over Kristen Blake-Black to him. We don't have Kristen, all we have is you! ...Hey..there was a time he wanted you more than anything...wonder if that still is true..maybe we can make a deal after all.." Sami laughed cruelly, but when she saw the stark fear in her mothers eyes, she softened a bit.

"No, Mother, I would not do that, but God you tempt me sometimes!"

Chandler got to work, pinning up Marlenas hair, then putting a scarf over it, taking off the prison shirt, and pulling a sweater over the top half of the prison issue denims.

"Ok, now walk around the deck a bit Doctor Evans, all we want is for Stefano to observe you strutting, so he thinks we have Kristen onboard. We need him not to bolt now!"

The steward handed the binoculars over to Stefano, and he observed the figures on the boat anchored about a quarter mile away. They had radioed this was as close as they wanted to come, they were offering proof of life, and asked that he do the same.

"Show the children" Stefano ordered, and both Ace and Liam were lifted up above the railings. Sami and Chandler both took binoculars from EJ and Harris to look with relief at the sight of the babies.

"My God, Harris, he has gotten so big! And he has so much red hair now!" her voice caught, and she could not help crying, as it had been so long since he had been cradled in her arms. This cruel closeness was painful.

"Only one more day, love, one more day". Harris soothed her, but his thought was "If the bastard keeps his word!" 

Ace saw the little ship in the distance, and instinctively knew this was his Mom and Dad come for him. His calendar resided in his pocket, now down to the last day. She had kept her promise to him, and he waved out gaily to the boat letting her know he was ready!

"EJ, come look, he is waving to us! " EJ took the glasses from her and looked with pride upon the little guy who was such a stalward lad. He embraced Samantha and began to wave back, "We are here for you now Ace, you are our legacy, you are not part of some old family feud, and this is stopping now!"

**Day 1**

Ace woke up, and dressed himself before the duennas had even come to wake him up. He marked off the last day with his crayon, and stuffed the now very ragged piece of paper into the pocket of his swim trunks. Once he was ready he went to stand in front of Liams crib, willing him to wake up too. Finally he could stand it no more, and his hand went over the to baby's eyelid. He pulled it up, until the little guy whimpered with annoyance, but his eyes did open. Seeing his buddy, he gave a drool laden grin.

"Liam, we get to go home today! Mom is coming to get us both!'

When the steward brought in the breakfast cart, Ace used his best behavior voice to ask if they could eat it up top and watch the dolphins. Duenna listened, and hoping it was going to be one of the "good days" with Ace, she agreed. He pointed to the circle walker, and said if she put Liam in it he would push him out on the deck. The other duenna was busy with beds, so it seemed the perfect solution. It would get the kids out in the air, while the room was tidied, and it was so much easier controlling Ace if he was kept in a good mood!

Stefano was sitting with Bart already, sipping his morning coffee and looking out across the water to where the Fancy Face was anchored. The launch was ready that was to pick Kristen off the boat, and once it was ascertained she was onboard, he was ready to keep his end of the bargain. He signaled for the boat to take off, and it sped towards the Fancy Face..

Ace gave Liam a piece of buttered toast to keep him occupied and quiet as he pushed him towards the storage closet. He opened the door with his stolen keys, rummaging through the orange vests as he tied several to the ring of the walker. The one he placed over the head of Liam swam on him, until he found some twine to tie it more securely. He knew he might get caught, but also knew he could get away with saying he was playing life raft games. That was the great thing about being a little kid, no one gave you much credit for anything!

He also had filched a pair of the binoculars, and focused on the launch as it approached the sail boat. It had drifted round, taking the launch boat out of the line of sight of Stefano, and he could sense the alarm bells going off in the man. But it was the phone call he saw Stefano pick up that told him all he needed to know! The tense set of Stefanos arms as he gripped the glasses was visible to Ace even from where he was. He had heard something on that call that changed everything!

When Stefano had looked towards him, motioning Bart to retrieve him and Liam, he knew it was his time to act!

"Hang on Liam, we are going flying!" he opened the escape gate latch, and pushed the walker over the side in a straight arm motion! Looping his own life vest around his arm, he followed! Bart screamed out loud as he knew he had gotten there too late, and the Boss was gonna be very upset!

"God almighty! I don't believe it, that kid jumped off the ship, and he pushed the babys walker too! Is he crazy?" Shawn was looking at a sight he did not believe was possible!

EJ grabbed the glasses, and verified what Shawn had seen, but to his horror, he could not see if the children had made it alright..it was a three story drop from that part of the ship!

The little red ring around the baby was visible as it bobbed about in the water, kept afloat by several vests that were encircling the orange clad child.

The men who had come over on the launch were also in shock at what seemed to have happened, and when Bo and Harris torpedoed the netting over them, they were unprepared for the onslaught as most of them were swept overboard.

Ace had also been spotted, Shawn pointed to where he had now surfaced, the orange vest he wore making him unmistakeable, against the blue-green of the sea!

EJ and Bo looked as they could see another boat from the ship being readied to go out and reclaim the kids, and they knew they would never get there in time before the other boat did. A scream from Samantha caught their attention and they whirled to see what she was so afraid of.

"EJ! EJ! Oh God! Sharks! Do something!" she was pointing and crying hysterically as she saw the dorsal fins circling the small orange dots out on the sea.

The pod of dolphins that had been playing around the boat that morning had found the little boy and another, and now were having a fine game with the new water toys! The ring was pushed from one to another, and Ace had grabbed onto the fin of his friend, the one known as Inky! Stefano wheeled himself over to get a look, and could not help the laughter escaping from him.

"Boss, you want we shoot the fishes, and get em back"

"You imbecile..you want we miss and shoot the babies?" Stefano hailed his launch to come back, besides the dolphins had made it past the point that the children could have been retrieved anyway. The guns held by EJ and Harris would have wiped out his men and it was no sense wasting good hired help.

"Ace, my child, I am going to miss you. What a marvel you would have been for me! God speed you boy, I hope I will have a chance to see you again before I really die!"

Liam had gotten over his initial scare at both the drop, the chill of the water, and the things that looked like overgrown versions of one of his crib toys. He was now thoroughly enjoying the ride of his life. The dolphins skimmed him over the water, every once in awhile going under to lift the entire walker out of the water as one would carry it on its back. They never went off course though, heading straight for the little white sail boat. Harris jumped over the side, with Shawn coming along to help and they brought the little bobber in, and gave him over to his mothers outstretched arms.

When he was close enough to see them clearly, Ace let go of the fin, waved to his Mom and Dad, as he began to swim on his own power. EJ dove in, with Samantha right behind him, as the three met in the open water, hugging and kissing as they towed him in.

"Why did you do that Ace? You could have drowned!" Sami scolded as she hugged.

Ace was nonplussed, digging the still readable but water logged calendar from his pocket. He unfolded it, and showed her. "It had to be today, and Stefano man was not being nice!"

"Are they coming out after us?" Bo was concerned as he knew unless they got a quick start, the Fancy Face was not a match for the forces of the Celeste or the speed of the launches.

"Looks like they are weighing anchor now, but they are turning out to Sea the other direction Pop" Shawn addressed his dad.

Stefano turned to the railing and waved out at them. Kristen was safe enough, that was what mattered. EJ and Harris had braved the prison, it was not their fault Kristen and Marlena had made a hash of it. It had still been a great adventure..and now that Kristen was out, things may still be interesting in Salem soon!

"He is letting us go" EJ turned to let the others know, and Bo put the heading in to sail for Greece.

EJ and Samantha turned all their attention then on the boy who had amazed them all with his cunning and bravery. He was totally involved in chewing his piece of gum that Chandler had fished from her purse, except he wanted to know one thing.

"Mom, Dad, when we get home, can I have a dolphin?"

(end of Measured for the Crown) love happy endings huh? With a touch of fairy tale!

Next installment is titled ( Hearts and Diamonds)


End file.
